MP Andriy Odarchenko, suspected of attempting to bribe Mustafa Nayem in bitcoins, is likely to have left Ukraine. This was stated by the SAPO prosecutor during a court hearing on 18 September, reports [Kommersant].
According to the prosecutor, Odarchenko was also absent from his workplace – the parliamentary session hall.
The prosecutor’s office suggested that the MP could have left the country via Zakarpattia region, as he had a close relationship with the former head of the Zakarpattia Regional State Administration Viktor Mykyta.
It should be noted that in the recordings of conversations from the court, Andrii Odarchenko spoke about his friendly relations with Viktor Mykyta and personal meetings with him when the man was still in charge of the Zakarpattia Regional State Administration. In addition, as it became known from the records of the HACC court hearings, the head of the Servant of the People faction, David Arakhamia, sent letters to the court asking to release the MP to attend the Rada meetings for voting.
In turn, the suspect’s lawyers said that their client had previously surrendered his passports, as required by law. The defence lawyers also added that they had not spoken to Andriy Odarchenko in the last two days and did not know where he might be now.
At the end of the meeting, the HACCU decided to bring Odarchenko in. On Thursday, 19 September, the judges will also consider a motion to forfeit bail and put the MP on the international wanted list.
What Andrii Odarchenko is suspected of
In November 2023, the NABU served Andriy Odarchenko with a notice of suspicion for attempting to bribe Mustafa Nayem, head of the State Agency for Reconstruction, in bitcoins. According to the agency, in return for the money, the MP asked for a decision to allocate money from the fund for the elimination of the consequences of Russian aggression to repair the buildings of the university where the MP was rector at the time.
In addition, the prosecutor’s office published his conversation with Nayem. In it, the MP said that he did not believe in Ukraine’s victory, and that Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be forced to negotiate with Russia, so the president wanted to hold elections before then.
Odarchenko himself stated that he had spoken to Nayem on “various topics” on several occasions, did not offer a bribe, and allegedly asked him to teach him how to use a crypto wallet.
The next day, the court imposed a pre-trial restraint in the form of detention with the possibility of bail in the amount of UAH 15 million.
on 23 November 2023, the Servant of the People suspended Odarchenko’s membership in the faction.
“This is a standard procedure that we apply in such cases. The final decision on him will be made based on the results of the investigation,” said party chairwoman Olena Shulyak.
On 24 November, the suspect exercised his right to be released on bail.
