Pressure being put on judges hearing NABU detectives' cases - anti-corruption officials
No lessons have been learned from last July’s attempts to limit the powers of anti-corruption bodies, those who falsified cases against detectives remain in their posts, and pressure is being put on judges hearing detectives’ cases, heads of Ukraine’s anti-corruption bodies said.
"The witness in [detective Mahamedrasulov’s] case has been acquitted, and according to our information, pressure is being put on the judges who issued the acquittal," National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) Director Semen Kryvonos said at a briefing in Kyiv on Monday.
The detective himself is currently reviewing the investigative case materials, Kryvonos said.
Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) Head Oleksandr Klymenko said: "This, by the way, is evidence that the consequences of last July’s events still remain: a huge number of detectives are under investigation, quite unreasonably in our view, and no measures are being taken."
Those involved in falsifying these investigations against detectives still remain in their posts, the SAPO head said.
"No consequences, no lessons have been learned from this event," Klymenko said.
Detectives under investigation are turning to judges for support, the NABU director said.
"We constantly record calls from certain departments of the Security Service of Ukraine and pressure on them," he said, adding that judges do not file complaints about the pressure with the relevant bodies.
"This all looks designed to prevent NABU detectives from defending themselves by any procedural means," Kryvonos said.