Top judicial official, previously accused of holding Russian citizenship, resigns
The High Qualification Commission, one of Ukraine's key judicial bodies, approved on March 27 the request of its chair Roman Ihnatov to be dismissed from the commission.
Ihnatov said he wrote the letter of his resignation as both the head and a member of the commission without "any influence or coercion."
Ukraine's Foreign Intelligence Service alleged last December that the official has Russian citizenship, a claim that Ihnatov denied. The allegations were also contested by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's Schemes investigative project, which previously uncovered the Russian passports of several other judges.
A working group of the High Qualification Commission issued a report in February saying that Ihnatov studied in Russia's Saratov between 1991 and 1995 under a temporary residence permit, but there is no evidence of him ever acquiring a Russian passport.
"(Ihnatov's) Russian citizenship is impossible to confirm due to the lack of diplomatic relations with the Russian Federation," a member of the working group concluded.
The official also reportedly came under investigation by the State Bureau of Investigation. According to Ihnatov, the bureau opened a treason case against him in connection with his visit to Russian-occupied Luhansk in November 2014.
Ihnatov denied any wrongdoing and acussed authorities of exerting pressure against the judiciary.
Oleg Sukhov
