Corruption

sAPO demands to confiscate part of the apartment registered to the Minister’s mother-in-law

The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office is asking to confiscate part of the value of the apartment where the current minister lives, but which is registered in his mother-in-law’s name. This was reported by the SAPO press service, Komersant ukrainskyi reports

The SAPO does not name the official, but the Anti-Corruption Action Center notes that it is the Minister of Agrarian Policy Vitaliy Koval and his mother-in-law Halyna Baraniuk, in whose apartment the minister lives with his family.

It is noted that this is an elite apartment in Kyiv worth more than UAH 9.3 million, which, according to the investigation, was actually used by the official’s family before it was officially leased.

“On May 8, 2025, the SAPO prosecutor, based on the materials of the NABU, the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption and on the basis of independently obtained evidence, taking into account information from the investigation agency Slidstvo.info, filed a lawsuit with the High Anti-Corruption Court to recognize part of the asset registered in the name of a relative of the current Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine as unjustified and to recover this part or its value as state revenue,” the statement said.

It was established that in 2021, the official’s relative acquired private ownership of an apartment of more than 170 m2 in one of the elite residential complexes in Kyiv with a total value of $300,000.

In 2023, the official began to include this property in his declaration as his family’s place of residence and his wife’s rental property.

At the same time, the SAPO noted, the evidence collected indicates that he and his family began using the property much earlier.

An analysis of the relative’s income and expenses revealed a partial inability to acquire this property at the expense of legitimate income. The version she put forward about receiving a loan of almost UAH 5.5 million was refuted by the evidence obtained.

The SAPO prosecutor filed a lawsuit to recognize the part of the asset as unjustified and recover it or to recover its value, which currently amounts to more than UAH 9.3 million, to the state.

Koval case

In September 2024, Slidstvo.Info published an investigation into Koval’s living in a 170-square-meter apartment in a premium residential complex in Kyiv worth almost UAH 18 million, which belongs to his retired mother-in-law.

Koval himself did not respond to the investigators’ inquiries, but in November 2024, he said on Suspilne TV that he was waiting for a professional response from the competent authorities and advised against talking about information received “somewhere and from somewhere.”

The Verkhovna Rada appointed Vitaliy Koval as Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food on September 5, 2024, and he was previously the head of the State Property Fund.

Before becoming the Minister of Agrarian Policy on September 5, 2024, Vitaliy Koval was the head of the Rivne Regional State Administration. During his tenure, companies associated with him, such as BBV Montazh, received significant contracts for road construction and maintenance in Rivne region. According to the NGO Anti-Corruption Headquarters, a significant portion of state contracts went to Rivneavtoshlyakhbud, which worked closely with Koval’s companies.