Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court set the bail for Andrii Smyrnov, the former deputy head of the Presidential Office at Hr 10 million ($247,000), the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) said on May 28.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) said the former deputy head had been charged on May 22 with illicitly enriching himself by Hr 15.7 million ($388,000) while in his former position, but did not name the suspect. Later in the day Ukrainska Pravda reported, citing sources, that it was Smyrnov.
Beyond the bail, the defendant will be unable to leave Kyiv and is required to regularly report on his whereabouts to the court and other relevant authorities.
Smyrnov held the position of deputy head from September 2019 until March 2024, when President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed him without naming a reason.
According to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), the suspect acquired assets worth more than Hr 17 million ($426,000) between 2020-2022, although he officially reported his salary and savings for the time period as Hr 1.3 million ($32,500).
Smyrnov reportedly purchased two luxury cars, two motorcycles, several parking spaces, an apartment in Lviv, and plot of land in Zakarpattia Oblast.
In an apparent effort to obfuscate his ownership of the assets, NABU said that he transferred the majority of the property assets to his brother, but secretly retained access.
Martin Fornusek
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