Ukraine's Anti-Corruption Court sentences former tax chief to 6 years in prison
Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated.
Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) sentenced Roman Nasirov, the former head of the country's State Fiscal Service, to six years in prison over charges stemming from his involvement in a gas extraction scandal linked to a former parliamentarian, the Anti-Corruption Action Center announced on Oct. 31.
Nasirov was found guilty over his role in making "illegal decisions" to favor former member of parliament Oleksandr Onyshchenko, a representative of the now barred pro-Russian Party of Regions, the Anti-Corruption Action Center wrote on Facebook. Ukraine's Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) later confirmed that Nasirov was convicted of abuse of power under the country's criminal code.
Nasirov, who headed the State Fiscal Service between 2015-2016, was involved in deferring unlawful rent payments for subsoil use to a firm headed by Onyshchenko in an apparent gas extraction scheme. The case has been ongoing since 2017.
The conviction is expected to be appealed. Nasirov was taken into custody ahead of a final verdict on his conviction.
One of Nasirov associates in the case, Volodymyr Novikov, was acquitted by the court.
In addition to the six year prison sentence, Nasirov was ordered to pay a UAH 17,000 ($400) fine and will be barred from holding certain government positions for three years.
Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a number of high-ranking former government officials have been convicted for their role in various corruption cases. Despite progress made in prosecuting corruption cases, critics have continued to decry political influence in anti-corruption cases involving former government officials.
Luca Léry Moffat
