National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) initiated criminal proceedings and started an investigation of illegal actions committed by the officials of the Prosecutor General’s Office based on a request by Sergey Rybalka.

This is stated in the letter by the first deputy head of NABU, Gizo Uglava to the member of parliament, a copy of which became available to Ukrainski Novyny.

According to the letter, information on the commitment of a criminal offense as qualified under the part 2 of article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine has been registered in the Integrated Register of Pre-trial Investigations, and a corresponding criminal investigation has been initiated and registered under No. 52017000000000838. The part 2 of article 364 of the Criminal Code suggests punishment for abuse of power or authority connected to the official status that has led to grave consequences.

The Criminal Code interprets such offense as an intentional use by a government official of their power or official status, in conflict with the interests of the institution they are part of, with a view to obtaining an illegal personal benefit or an illegal benefit for another individual or entity, if it has caused harm to the rights, the liberties, and the interests protected by the law of individuals, the state, the society or corporate entities. The part 2 of article 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine suggests imprisonment for 3-6 years, prohibition to perform certain activities for up to 3 years, and a fee of 500-1000 non-taxable minimum incomes as a punitive measure.

Earlier, MP Sergey Rybalka mentioned that he had approached NABU with a request to investigate facts of the alleged fabrication of criminal cases against himself by the Prosecutor General’s Office described by the former Prosecutor General’s Office employee Dmitriy Sus.

“In the past, we have more than once submitted to the law enforcement agencies requests concerning illegal searches, detainment, threats, attempts of murder of myself and employees of my family’s companies. However, because of the mutual cover-up in the law enforcement and the existing political demand for the killing of myself and my family, as well as due to political pressure, those cases never advanced” — he noted.

Former deputy head of the department of investigation of the high-priority economic cases at the Prosecutor General’s Office told an American journalist about the criminal cases fabrication schemes employed by the PGO, citing the persecution of Sergey Rybalka as an example.

According to his statement, the cases were fabricated upon request of a co-owner of ATB supermarket chain Hennadiy Butkevich. He mentioned that the investigators were pressured to produce any compromising information, as well as create the ‘legitimate’ pretexts for the illegal total surveillance targeting the member of parliament and the individuals close to him.

In his interview with Ukrainska Pravda, Sus also mentioned that similar methods were used to fabricate cases against the member of the Supreme Council of Justice Pavlo Grechkovskiy.