Did President know?: Media have published new excerpts from Mindich’s conversations with Shefir and Umerov. VIDEO

Journalists have published excerpts from a conversation between oligarch Timur Mindich, a close associate of Zelenskyy, and former presidential adviser Serhii Shefir and former defence minister and Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council Rustem Umerov, which were recorded as part of Operation "Midas".

According to Censor.NET, this is reported in an article by UP.

Details

The recordings discuss, in particular, bail for former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Chernyshov, as well as the construction of four buildings – likely belonging to the ‘Dynasty’ housing cooperative. The conversations mention Andrii (presumably former Head of the Presidential Office Andrii Yermak) and Volodymyr (presumably President Zelenskyy).

They also quote a conversation between Mindich and the then-Minister of Defence Rustem Umerov regarding, presumably, the procurement of Fire Point products, bulletproof vests, and Umerov’s possible appointment as ambassador to the US.

Journalist Mykhailo Tkach noted that the participants in the recordings also discuss "Masha"; this does not refer to Maria Berlinska, but likely to Maria Dotsenko, an adviser to the CEO of JSC "National Investment Fund of Ukraine" on the development of strategic partnerships with Middle Eastern countries.

The authors of the report stated that Umerov’s press office had not commented on these recordings, whilst Timur Mindich said he was prepared to comment on these conversations following questioning by the NABU.

Mindichgate

In November 2025, NABU carried out searches at Mindich’s premises; he had left Ukraine a few hours before the searches.
On 4 November, searches were carried out at one of the branches of the separate divisions of NAEK "Energoatom" in connection with a corruption case.
NABU also carried out searches at the home of former Energy Minister Halushchenko and at Energoatom.
On 10 November 2025, NABU and the SAPO announced a large-scale operation to expose corruption in the energy sector.
Subsequently, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau raided an office in central Kyiv belonging to the family of former MP and current Russian Federation Senator Andrii Derkach. There, they kept ‘black accounts’, recorded money transfers, and organised money laundering.
On 11 November, NABU released recordings featuring former Minister Herman Halushchenko and Mindich.
Former Minister Oleksii Chernyshov was notified of his status as a suspect in a case of illicit enrichment as part of Operation Midas.
One of the suspects, Dmytro Basov, was remanded in custody with bail set at 40 million hryvnias.
Halushchenko’s former adviser, Myroniuk, was remanded in custody with bail set at 126 million hryvnias.
The Cabinet of Ministers submitted proposals to the National Security and Defence Council regarding the imposition of personal sanctions against Timur Mindich and Oleksandr Tsukerman following the NABU investigation into corruption in the energy sector.
Ihor Myroniuk and Dmytro Basov, the executive director for security at Energoatom, who appeared in NABU recordings under the alias ‘Tenor’, were remanded in custody for 60 days.
Another suspect, Lesia Ustymenko, was also remanded in custody for 60 days.
The High Anti-Corruption Court has imposed a preventive measure on Igor Fursenko, a suspect in the energy sector corruption case (known as ‘Ryoshik’ in the NABU recordings).
On 13 November, the High Anti-Corruption Court arrested Liudmyla Zorina, setting bail at 12 million hryvnias.
Zelenskyy imposed sanctions against Mindich and Tsukerman.
On 1 December, a preventive measure – detention – was imposed on Mindich in absentia. The investigation considers him the leader of a group that received and laundered money from corruption schemes in the energy sector. Mindich’s case may now be referred to Interpol for his arrest, particularly when he crosses the border.
On 15 February 2026, Herman Halushchenko was detained whilst attempting to cross the border. On 16 February, it emerged that officials from the NABU and the SAPO had informed the former official of the charges against him, and the very next day, the court remanded him in custody with the possibility of bail set at 200 million hryvnias.