Investment banker Mazepa released on reduced bail
Ihor Mazepa, a Ukrainian businessman and the founder of the Concorde Capital investment firm, has been released from pre-trial detention on a Hr 21 million ($550,450) bail, according to a statement by his company's press service.
The bail set by the Kyiv Pechersk District Court was reduced from the initial Hr 350 million ($9.3 million).
Mazepa, a vocal critic of state pressure on business, was detained on Jan. 18 for allegedly illegally seizing land in Kyiv Oblast in 2020-2021 as he tried to cross the border into Poland.
According to Concorde Capital, he was on his way to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, when law enforcement officers detained him and raided the company's office.
The investment banker and his press service called his detention an unfounded attack against his business. Mazepa founded Concorde Capital in 2004 and is now considered one of Ukraine's leading investment banks.
On Jan. 19, the State Bureau of Investigation said the businessman is suspected of illegally seizing land near Kyiv, calling him "the organizer of a criminal scheme."
Three more people were detained, including Mazepa's brother Yurii.
Elsa CourtMazepa's detention is related to the acquisition of land rights for the construction of the luxurious cottage resort Goodlife Park in the Vyshhorod district, Kyiv Oblast. The resort is located on the shore of the Kyiv Reservoir.
According to law enforcement, Mazepa allegedly organized a scheme to illegally seize the land on which the state-owned Kyiv Hydroelectric Power Plant facilities are located.
Mazepa denied the accusations. He added that his detention is linked to his "Manifesto 42" group, which emphasized the need to defend Article 42 of Ukraine's Constitution.
The article stipulates that "everyone has the right to engage in legal entrepreneurial activity" and that the state "shall ensure the protection of competition and entrepreneurial activity."
In November, the "Manifesto 42" group said that things have only worsened in the five months since President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered addressing pressure on businesses by creating a single body for inspections.
Dmytro Basmat
