SAPO sends Tymoshenko case on bribing MPs to court

A prosecutor of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), based on materials from a pretrial investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU), has sent an indictment to court against Batkivshchyna faction leader Yulia Tymoshenko, who was exposed in January 2026 for offering unlawful benefits to Ukrainian MPs.

SAPO reported this on its Telegram channel Tuesday, without specifying the faction leader’s name.

According to the investigation, despite the exposure by NABU and SAPO in December 2025 of facts regarding Ukrainian MPs receiving unlawful benefits for decisions on draft laws in parliament, the accused initiated negotiations with certain MPs to establish a systemic mechanism for providing unlawful benefits in exchange for loyal behavior during voting.

"This was not about one-time agreements, but about a regular cooperation mechanism that involved advance payments and was designed for a long-term period," SAPO emphasized.

The anti-corruption prosecutor’s office noted that the MPs were to receive instructions on voting, and in some cases, on abstaining or not participating in votes.

As reported, Tymoshenko is suspected of offering bribes to MPs for ‘necessary’ votes in the Verkhovna Rada. Earlier, the court set a deadline for Tymoshenko and her defense to review the case materials until May 24.

The High Anti-corruption Court of Ukraine (HACC) chose a preventive measure for Tymoshenko in the form of UAH 33 million bail. The full bail amount was posted.

HACC also partially seized Tymoshenko’s property. In particular, the court refused to seize funds in one of Tymoshenko’s accounts as requested by the prosecution. Additionally, the court decided to seize certain property belonging to the MP’s husband, Oleksandr Tymoshenko, namely Toyota Land Cruiser 200 and Audi A8 cars, and two garages in Dnipro. On February 16, the HACC Appeals Chamber partially overturned the first instance decision regarding the seizure of Tymoshenko’s property.

On May 13, 2026, the Appeals Chamber of the Higher Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine dismissed the appeals of Batkivshchyna faction leader Yulia Tymoshenko’s defense lawyers to cancel the suspicion against the MP.