Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Onyschenko of the People's Will party, as a beneficiary of operator companies of public joint-stock company Ukrgazvydobuvannia, organized a criminal group with the aim of taking hold of funds belonging to Ukrgazvydobuvannia, Ukraine's Prosecutor General Yuriy Lutsenko has said.

Speaking at a meeting of the procedural committee of the Verkhovna Rada in Kyiv on Wednesday, Lutsenko said that Onyschenko while being a member of parliament had full control over the three operators of Ukrgazvydobuvannia – Nadra Geocenter LLC, Khas LLC, and Karpatnadrainvest LLC.

"The formation and management of a criminal organization by Onyschenko is evidenced by the fact of Oleksandr Romanovych Onyschenko's participation in a criminal organization made of the founders of Nadrageocentre LLC, Khas LLC, Karpatnadrainvest LLC, where he was the main beneficiary, as stated in their registration documents. The examination of all the evidence as a whole confirms that Oleksandr Romanovych Onyschenko created and then was managing a criminal organization," the prosecutor general said.

Lutsenko said that Onyschenko created the criminal group with the participation of a number of other people, including representatives of Ukrgazvydobuvannia in order to gain possession of the company's funds. The group illegally took hold of UAH 1.613 billion, he said.

"The total cost of natural gas was deliberately understated by UAH 1,613,224,251 as a result of joint activities of the criminal organization," the prosecutor general said.

Lutsenko said that Onyschenko's actions fall under Article 191 (misappropriation, embezzlement of property through abuse of office), Article 205 (creation of sham companies) and Article 255 (creation of a criminal organization) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

"Please consider this request and give your consent to the prosecution of Onyschenko," the prosecutor general said.

Lutsenko also asked parliament to authorize the detention and the arrest of the lawmaker.

As reported, Ukrainian Anti-Corruption Bureau Director Artem Sytnyk said on June 15 that criminal group members had been identified as part of an investigation into abuses committed by a number of MPs and high-ranking officials when selling gas extracted jointly with PJSC Ukrgazvydobuvannia. MP Oleksandr Onyschenko is implicated in this case. Sytnyk also said that ten out of the criminal group's 20 members had been detained and investigators were working with them.

At present, Onyschenko is not a suspect in the Ukrgazvydobuvannia case as he possesses parliamentary immunity from prosecution.