16:10 21.03.2017

MP Leschenko asks law-enforcement organs to investigate Yanukovych payments to Manafort

2 min read
MP Leschenko asks law-enforcement organs to investigate Yanukovych payments to Manafort

Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine deputy from the Petro Poroshenko Bloc (PPB) faction Serhiy Leschenko has said he has original documents documenting the transfer of funds from disgraced ex-President Viktor Yanukovych to American political adviser Paul Manafort. Leschenko said the payments were routed from an offshore company with accounts in Krygyzstan. He asked American law-enforcement agencies to help investigate the transfers.

Leschenko at a press conference on Tuesday in Kyiv said during his investigation he identified the jurisdictions used by Yanukovych. The MP said a so-called "black ledger" was found last year enumerating the frequency and amounts paid to Manafort.

One of the payments, dated October 14, 2009, was a $750,000 transaction wired to the accounts of Manafort in the state of Virginia, U.S.

According to Leschenko, Manafort received the funds from the accounts of an offshore company registered in Belize, which was opened in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

Leschenko said the payment wasn't for services rendered as a political expert, but based on what the MP said was a fictitious contract [for the sale of computers] with the aim of laundering money.

According to the contract, Manafort received the funds in exchange for delivering 501 computers to the Belize offshore company.

"According to my information, this was one of the schemes used by [Yanukovych's] Party of Regions with the aim of laundering money. They had accounts, including in Kyrgyzstan, on which they received money and carried out illegal transactions," he said.

Leschenko showed the original contracts, which were signed by Manafort. Leschenko said the amount of money shown in the contract corresponded with information in the so-called "black ledger" of the Party of Regions.

"I am certain these facts should be further investigated by both by Ukrainian and American law-enforcement agencies," the MP said.

Leschenko said he received the documents at the end of January 2017 from Manafort's office in Kyiv.

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