Head of OP Yermak probably requested surveillance of journalists - Bihus. VIDEO
A new video by the Bihus.Info investigative project shows that the wiretapping and video recording of their former colleagues was ordered by one of the departments of the Security Service of Ukraine.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to the Bihus.Info video.
"The day before Bihus.Info went to the suburban complex, an interesting group of individuals held their "corporate party" there. They booked houses with disposable SIM cards, drove under cover numbers, and brought huge suitcases with them," said Denys Bihus, the project's founder.
He noted that in this case, "they brazenly crossed the boundaries of legality" and such actions of the SSU threaten the statehood of Ukraine, which tried to discredit the activities of journalists.
"I could now tell you a story that dozens of interlocutors have shared with me. In this story, in the President's Office, somewhere on the floor where Yermak sits, a thought comes to mind: "Why are they showing bad things about us? Let's show something about them too." And after that, the task was handed over to the SSU, which was like, "Oh, we have a special media department here, let them do something." And the DPNS branch (Department for the Protection of National Statehood of the SSU - Ed.), as they say, is doing its best to the best of its powers and competence. But I don't want to operate with such stories," said Denys Bihus.
According to the project founder, it is impossible to imagine that such a transaction was unauthorized.
"The Department for the Protection of National Statehood, even if it's the media department, doesn't give a damn about who smokes what. Just ask other law enforcement agencies how long it takes to get technical support from the SSU for investigations of really important serious crimes. So option two is that someone came and gave the order. And in such a way that the head of the Department himself, dozens of specialists and authorised operatives became involved. There are a minimum of options here, who could be so influential, right?" - he said.
Surveillance of Bihus.Info
As a reminder, on January 16, a video was posted online showing Bihus.Info employees allegedly using drugs at a New Year's corporate party. The founder of the project, Denys Bihus, noted that the video showed part of the team, namely the cameramen. According to him, the journalists did not use drugs.
"The team is aware of the severity of the situation. Of course, the wiretapping and surveillance were illegal, and the goals of those who recorded were clear. But this is no excuse for what we saw on the video - namely, the use of illegal substances by several of our colleagues," the team said.
Later, Bihus said that Bihus.Info team members had been under surveillance for about a year. And the New Year's corporate party was part of a security operation.
The SSU opened proceedings on the fact of illegal wiretapping and video recording. It also seized disks with camera recordings.
Recently, Bihus.Info journalists asked for help in identifying the people who are likely to be involved in the surveillance of the investigative team.
