NABU will not announce any potential charges against former Prosecutor General Kravchenko, - Kryvonos
The NABU will not announce any potential notification of suspicion against former Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko in connection with the ‘Carthage’ case. Nor is the agency monitoring his travel abroad.
He said this during a briefing, according to Censor.NET.
Regarding the possible suspicion against Kravchenko
During the briefing, journalists asked Kryvonos whether the investigation had gathered sufficient evidence against Kravchenko and why, if such evidence existed, he had not yet been notified of the charges against him.
"We have never announced any charges and will not do so. That is our general rule. If sufficient evidence has been gathered to bring charges, then those charges are formally laid", replied the director of NABU.
At the same time, Kryvonos stated that the information regarding the existence of Operation ‘Emperor’ is untrue. Earlier, Oleksii Honcharenko, a Member of Parliament from the European Solidarity party, claimed that Kravchenko had informed Kryvonos of the allegations because the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) was preparing to announce a new investigation called ‘Emperor’, which allegedly concerned the former Prosecutor General.
Regarding Kravchenko’s business trip abroad
Kryvonos was asked separately about Kravchenko’s stay abroad and what action the NABU might take should grounds for his prosecution arise in future as part of criminal proceedings.
The Director of NABU emphasised that the bureau would act strictly in accordance with the law and the Code of Criminal Procedure in relation to any person who is granted the status of a suspect.
"As for the business trip, he signed off on it himself; we don’t keep track of such matters," said Kryvonos, adding that NABU had not monitored the former Prosecutor General’s trip.
The position of the head of the SAPO
Oleksandr Klymenko, head of the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, noted that it will be possible to determine whether the attack on the anti-corruption bodies was coordinated by monitoring subsequent developments in the cases that have come to light.
"It will become clear whether the attack was coordinated or uncoordinated, or whether it was the act of a single individual who, as you say, was unable to cope with some kind of stress," he said.
Klymenko also drew attention to the fact that some of the cases that have now come to public attention have been ongoing for some time.
"If you pull a case from 10 to 15 years ago out of thin air, it doesn’t look very good, to be honest. Especially following Operation ‘Carthage’ against the Office of the Prosecutor General," said the head of the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
Kravchenko’s resignation and the allegations against Kryvonos
- Ruslan Kravchenko had previously stated that he had signed a notice of suspicion against NABU Director Semen Kryvonos and a person close to the head of the SAPO.
- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the Rada to support the dismissal of Ruslan Kravchenko from the post of Prosecutor General without delay.
- The NABU and the SAPO described Kravchenko’s actions as a continuation of a systematic attack on anti-corruption bodies.
- According to the CCC, Kravchenko left the country on the night of 14 September.
- The Prosecutor General subsequently stated that he is currently abroad on a business trip.
- According to information from Censor.NET sources, Kravchenko registered his trip abroad as a business trip to Brussels.
- Subsequently, Prosecutor General Kravchenko stated that NABU Director Kryvonos is suspected of a sham adoption in order to evade criminal liability.
- On 14 September, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy decided to suspend Ruslan Kravchenko from his post as Prosecutor General of Ukraine.
