Latest news with #SBU
CTV News
19 hours ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Ukraine conducts widespread searches, arrests of anti-corruption officials
KYIV -- Ukrainian security services arrested officials from the country's main anti-corruption agency on Monday and conducted dozens of searches, in a crackdown that the agency said went too far and had effectively shut down its entire mission. The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. Ambassadors of G7 nations in Kyiv issued a statement saying they had a 'shared commitment' to uphold transparency and independent institutions. But the ambassadors said they had met NABU officials and had 'serious concerns and intend to discuss these developments with government leaders.' NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. 'In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents,' the statement said, although it also added that some of the cases were about links to Russia. Although the risk of Russian infiltration 'remained relevant,' this could not be a justification to 'halt the work of the entire institution,' NABU said in a statement. 'Pressure' Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged earlier this month with fraud and evading military service. Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office for exposing corrupt officials. On Monday, Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Zelenskyy's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler on at least 60 occasions. Separately, it had detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia. A third SBU statement said some senior NABU officials had ties to lawmaker Fedir Khrystenko, believed to have fled Ukraine after the Russian invasion in 2022. A separate law enforcement body, the State Bureau of Investigations, said it had served suspicion notices to three NABU employees for road accidents that had resulted in injuries. NABU said the road traffic accident cases were between two and four years old. Transparency International said conducting the searches without court orders 'demonstrates the massive nature of the pressure by the SBU and (Prosecutor General's Office) on anti-corruption law enforcement agencies.' It called on Zelenskyy to guarantee the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies. By Max Hunder (Reporting by Max Hunder; Editing by Peter Graff and Marguerita Choy)
Saudi Gazette
20 hours ago
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Ukraine's security service arrests anti-corruption agents over alleged Kremlin ties
KYIV — Ukraine's SBU state security service launched a series of raids on the country's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) as part of an investigation into allegations that officials within the agency have been cooperating with Russia. The SBU said on Monday that it had arrested two officials working for NABU, one a suspected Russian spy and the other over alleged business ties to Russia. The security service said one of the officials, who was unnamed, allegedly collected and sent the details of Ukrainian law enforcement officers and other citizens to the Kremlin. "At least 60 episodes of transferring restricted information to his contact in the FSB have been documented", the SBU said in a statement. The agent's "subversive activities" were coordinated by Dmitry Ivantsov, deputy head of security for former pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, the SBU said. The agency said that Ivantsov in February 2014 helped Yanukovych flee to Russia — following the Maidan revolution — but himself "remained in Crimea, joined the ranks of the occupiers, and was recruited by the FSB". Another senior detective, Ruslan Maghamedrasulov, was detained on allegations of helping his father do illegal business involving industrial hemp in Russia, and on suspicion of passing secret information to Russian spies, the SBU said in another statement. A third statement by the security service said that fugitive pro-Russian politician Fedir Khrystenko — who it suspects of working with the FSB from Ukraine — "has significant influence on the activities of the NABU". This would be further investigated, the SBU said. On Monday, NABU said that at least 70 searches had been conducted in relation to more than 15 of its staff members in different regions of Ukraine. "In most cases, the grounds cited for these actions are the alleged involvement of certain individuals in traffic accidents," it said in a statement. "However, some employees are being accused of possible connections with the aggressor state [Russia]." According to NABU, there is no evidence that its employee detained by the SBU was involved in anti-state activities. In a post on Telegram, the agency said it received information concerning a "potential risk" associated with one of its staff members in 2023. After joint checks on the employee were conducted in tandem with the SBU, it was found that they posed no risk. "The risk of agents of influence from the aggressor state [Russia] exists for any government body. However, this cannot justify halting the work of the entire institution," NABU said in a statement, adding that it criticised the use of force against its employees and the raid's execution without a court order. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International Ukraine stated that the searches carried out without a legal mandate demonstrated that the authorities were exerting "massive pressure" on Ukraine's anti-corruption agents. The actions of the SBU show that authorities are "attempting to undermine the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption institutions," the watchdog said. "These actions appear to be aimed at forcibly obtaining information and influencing investigations into senior officials," it added. Ambassadors of G7 countries in Kyiv also raised concerns, issuing a statement saying they "met with (representatives of) NABU today, we have serious concerns and we intend to discuss these developments with the leadership of the government". The diplomats reiterated their support for "transparency, independent institutions and good governance" and partnerships with Ukraine "to jointly fight corruption". Separately, Transparency International Ukraine last week raised concern over the arrest of anti-corruption campaigner Vitaliy Shabunin. Shabunin, the co-founder of the NGO Anti-Corruption Action Centre has been charged with fraud and evading military service. The prosecution "has signs of being politically motivated", according to Transparency International Ukraine. In an interview with The Kyiv Independent published on Monday, Shabunin said he believed the authorities were trying to "make an example out of him". — Euronews
NBC News
a day ago
- Politics
- NBC News
Ukraine conducts widespread searches, arrests of anti-corruption officials
Ukrainian security services arrested officials from the country's main anti-corruption agency on Monday and conducted dozens of searches, in a crackdown that the agency said went too far and had effectively shut down its entire mission. The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. Ambassadors of Group of Seven nations in Kyiv issued a statement saying they had a 'shared commitment' to uphold transparency and independent institutions. But the ambassadors said they had met NABU officials and had 'serious concerns and intend to discuss these developments with government leaders.' NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. 'In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents,' the statement said, although it also added that some of the cases were about links to Russia. Although the risk of Russian infiltration 'remained relevant,' this could not be a justification to 'halt the work of the entire institution,' NABU said in a statement. Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged earlier this month with fraud and evading military service. Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's office for exposing corrupt officials. On Monday, Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Zelenskiy's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler on at least 60 occasions. Separately, it had detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia. A third SBU statement said some senior NABU officials had ties to lawmaker Fedir Khrystenko, believed to have fled Ukraine after the Russian invasion in 2022. A separate law enforcement body, the State Bureau of Investigations, said it had served suspicion notices to three NABU employees for road accidents that had resulted in injuries. NABU said the road traffic accident cases were between two and four years old. Transparency International said conducting the searches without court orders 'demonstrates the massive nature of the pressure by the SBU and (Prosecutor General's Office) on anti-corruption law enforcement agencies'. It called on Zelenskyy to guarantee the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies.
Euronews
a day ago
- Politics
- Euronews
Ukraine arrests anti-corruption officials over alleged Kremlin links
Ukraine's SBU state security service launched a series of raids on the country's National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) as part of an investigation into allegations that officials within the agency have been cooperating with Russia. The SBU said on Monday that it had arrested two officials working for NABU, one a suspected Russian spy and the other over alleged business ties to Russia. The security service said one of the officials, who was unnamed, allegedly collected and sent the details of Ukrainian law enforcement officers and other citizens to the Kremlin. "At least 60 episodes of transferring restricted information to his contact in the FSB have been documented", the SBU said in a statement. The agent's "subversive activities" were coordinated by Dmitry Ivantsov, deputy head of security for former pro-Russian Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, the SBU said. The agency said that Ivantsov in February 2014 helped Yanukovych flee to Russia — following the Maidan revolution — but himself "remained in Crimea, joined the ranks of the occupiers, and was recruited by the FSB". Another senior detective, Ruslan Maghamedrasulov, was detained on allegations of helping his father do illegal business involving industrial hemp in Russia, and on suspicion of passing secret information to Russian spies, the SBU said in another statement. A third statement by the security service said that fugitive pro-Russian politician Fedir Khrystenko — who it suspects of working with the FSB from Ukraine — "has significant influence on the activities of the NABU". This would be further investigated, the SBU said. On Monday, NABU said that at least 70 searches had been conducted in relation to more than 15 of its staff members in different regions of Ukraine. "In most cases, the grounds cited for these actions are the alleged involvement of certain individuals in traffic accidents," it said in a statement. "However, some employees are being accused of possible connections with the aggressor state [Russia]." According to NABU, there is no evidence that its employee detained by the SBU was involved in anti-state activities. In a post on Telegram, the agency said it received information concerning a "potential risk" associated with one of its staff members in 2023. After joint checks on the employee were conducted in tandem with the SBU, it was found that they posed no risk. "The risk of agents of influence from the aggressor state [Russia] exists for any government body. However, this cannot justify halting the work of the entire institution," NABU said in a statement, adding that it criticised the use of force against its employees and the raid's execution without a court order. Concerns over crackdown Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International Ukraine stated that the searches carried out without a legal mandate demonstrated that the authorities were exerting "massive pressure" on Ukraine's anti-corruption agents. The actions of the SBU show that authorities are "attempting to undermine the independence of Ukraine's anti-corruption institutions," the watchdog said. "These actions appear to be aimed at forcibly obtaining information and influencing investigations into senior officials," it added. Ambassadors of G7 countries in Kyiv also raised concerns, issuing a statement saying they "met with (representatives of) NABU today, we have serious concerns and we intend to discuss these developments with the leadership of the government". The diplomats reiterated their support for "transparency, independent institutions and good governance" and partnerships with Ukraine "to jointly fight corruption". Separately, Transparency International Ukraine last week raised concern over the arrest of anti-corruption campaigner Vitaliy Shabunin. Shabunin, the co-founder of the NGO Anti-Corruption Action Centre has been charged with fraud and evading military service. The prosecution "has signs of being politically motivated", according to Transparency International Ukraine. In an interview with The Kyiv Independent published on Monday, Shabunin said he believed the authorities were trying to "make an example out of him".
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Politics
- Irish Independent
Ukrainian security service arrests so many key anti-corruption agency workers that it can no longer function
The SBU security body said it had arrested one official at the National Anti-corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) as a suspected Russian spy and another over suspected business ties to Russia. Other NABU officials had ties to a fugitive Ukrainian politician's banned party, the SBU said. But NABU, which has embarrassed senior government officials with corruption allegations, said the crackdown went beyond state security issues to cover unrelated allegations such as years-old traffic accidents. Anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International said the searches showed that the authorities were exerting 'massive pressure' on Ukraine's corruption fighters. NABU said at least 70 searches had been conducted by various Ukrainian law enforcement and security agencies in connection with 15 of its employees, and that these had taken place without the approval of a court. 'In the vast majority of cases, the grounds for these actions are the involvement of individuals in road traffic accidents,' the statement said. Although the risk of Russian infiltration 'remained relevant', this could not be a justification to 'halt the work of the entire institution', NABU said in a statement. Anti-corruption campaigners have been alarmed since Vitaliy Shabunin, a top anti-corruption activist, was charged with fraud and evading military service. Mr Shabunin and his allies have cast those charges as politically motivated retribution from president Volodymyr Zelensky's office for exposing corrupt officials. Yesterday, Mr Shabunin condemned the searches of NABU personnel. Mr Zelensky's office denies that prosecutions in Ukraine are politically motivated. The SBU said it had arrested a mole working for Russian intelligence inside NABU, who had passed information to his handler at least 60 times. Separately, it detained a senior NABU detective on suspicion of acting as an intermediary in his father's sales of industrial hemp to Russia.
