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Ukraine Suspends Justice Minister as Energy Graft Probe Widens

Prosecutors say an Energoatom kickback network tied to businessman Timur Mindich is under active investigation with cash photos and taped calls released.

Overview

  • Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko said the Cabinet held an extraordinary meeting to suspend Herman Galushchenko and assigned Deputy Minister Lyudmyla Sugak to serve as acting justice minister.
  • Galushchenko said he accepts the political decision to step aside during the inquiry and will contest the allegations through legal channels.
  • NABU and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office are conducting a sector-wide operation that has produced images of seized foreign currency and audio fragments involving Mindich, Energoatom representative Dmytro Basov, and adviser Ihor Mironyuk.
  • Prosecutor Serhii Savytskyi told a court that investigators view Mindich as leading a scheme extracting 10–15% kickbacks from Energoatom contracts and exerting influence over former ministers, while ex-defense minister Rustem Umerov rejected any improper influence.
  • Authorities reported five detentions and seven notices of suspicion, with more than 70 searches including at Energoatom and locations tied to Galushchenko, as media and a lawmaker reported that Mindich was not detained and had left Ukraine.