Suspects in Kyiv looting case released on bail

Members of a group involved in corruption schemes in the Kyiv City Council have been released on bail, reports Bihus.info.

This concerns a high-profile case linked to the large-scale embezzlement of budget funds. During previous searches at the Kyiv City Council, $6.4 million, €630,000 and 800,000 hryvnia were found. At that time, one of the key suspects, Dmytro Komarnytskyi, managed to flee abroad. Now his “colleagues” are also free, having posted multi-million hryvnia bail.

How much did each pay for their freedom?

• Olena Marchenko, Kyiv City Council deputy — 50 million hryvnia
• Mykhailo Terentiiev, deputy and head of the land committee of the Kyiv City Council — nearly 20 million hryvnia
• Petro Olenych, deputy to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko — 15 million hryvnia
• Oleksii Mushcha, deputy director of the “Kyivblagoustrii” municipal enterprise — 7 million hryvnia
• Yuriy Leonov, first deputy director of “Spetszhyltofond” — 4.5 million hryvnia

Wiretaps confirm links between suspects

The names of the case participants appeared in intercepted conversations. For example, in one recording, Mykhailo Terentiiev stated:
"И у меня там целая эта… У меня ж все партнеры. Ну, мои эти… Лёха партнер (Алексей Мушта). Еще там человек семь" (And I have a whole... I have all partners. Well, my... Lyokha is a partner (Oleksii Mushcha). There are about seven more people there).

Now these “partners” are free, despite corruption charges worth tens of millions of dollars.