Kyiv Court of Appeals has granted a petition by an investigator of the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine to choose a preventive measure in the form of detention in absentia for fugitive ex Income and Tax Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Klymenko.

The court issued this ruling on February 8, 2017, its press service reported.

The ruling says that if Klymenko is detained, within 48 hours from the moment of his delivery to the place of the criminal proceedings, the court should consider with the participation of the defendant the issue of the application of the chosen preventive measure in the form of detention or changing this restriction to a milder one.

As reported, on March 5, 2014 the EU imposed sanctions in the form of an asset freeze against 18 former high rank officials of Ukraine. In April four people were added to the sanctions list, including Klymenko. The sanctions were imposed on the basis of documents provided by the Prosecutor General's Office of Ukraine.

Klymenko has repeatedly refuted allegations made against him, saying they are political in nature.

On June 15, 2016, the press service of Klymenko said the EU court decided to annul sanctions imposed in 2014 against the former minister.

Last year, Kyiv's Pechersky district court twice rejected the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office (PGO) request to start the investigation in absentia against Klymenko.

The Prosecutor General's Office tried to launch an investigation in absentia over the embezzlement of UAH 161 million by the former minister when he ran the post of the head of the State Tax Service of Ukraine. The court established that the Prosecutor General's Office sent a notification to the following address: Mekhanizatoriv Street, apartment 280 in Kyiv, while Klymenko is registered in apartment 270.

The former minister is on an Interpol wanted list.