HACCU arrests head of Batkivshchyna faction in Poltava regional council

The High Anti-Corruption Court has arrested the leader of the political party "Batkivshchyna" in the Poltava Regional Council, Serhiy Bielashov, with a bail set at 30 million hryvnias. He is implicated in a case related to alleged irregularities in the purchase of gas for the needs of Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railways). According to the investigation, these irregularities caused losses of 206 million hryvnias. This information was reported by the Anti-Corruption Center.

The investigating judge of the State Bureau of Investigations (VAKS), Viktor Maslov, ordered the detention of the Poltava businessman, Serhiy Bielashov. Serhiy leads the "Batkivshchyna" faction in the Poltava Regional Council and is the owner of the "Ukrainsky Kapital" bank. The judge also set an alternative bail of 30 million hryvnias. The preventive measure will be in effect until August 9.

The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office requested bail of over 120 million hryvnias. However, Bielashov's defense argued that the suspicion was unjustified and that detaining the suspect, who has had a second-degree disability since 2009, would violate the Convention and have signs of torture. Additionally, Yulia Tymoshenko, the head of the "Batkivshchyna" faction, personally vouched for Bielashov. Tymoshenko also stated that this investigation is either "colossal incompetence or a politically motivated case." She added that they formed an entire analytical group that studied all publicly available documents and "concluded that there is not even a hint of a crime." Tymoshenko referenced a decision by the European Court of Human Rights regarding herself, which also stated that there was no criminal activity. She promised to personally meet with G7 ambassadors and go through every point of the case, raise the issue of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau at the Conciliation Council, and have her colleagues Sobolev and Vlasenko address this matter at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.