The recorded conversations of around 1,000 minutes of suspects in Ukraine’s corruption scandal are quite impressive: one of those tapped was Tymur Minditsch, a close business partner of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Minditsch appears in the conversation log as Karlsson. The second suspect, Olexander Zukerman, as Sugarman. Both are said to be worth millions cash postponed and has since moved to Israel. Zelensky has now imposed sanctions against them.
Here are some key points from the authorities’ 15-month investigation tape:
Former deputy head of government and Zelensky’s confidant, Olexij Chernyshov, known in the records as Che Guevara, received 1.2 million US dollars and almost 100,000 euros in cash. He was accused of being involved in money laundering.
Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko and Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk have resigned due to a corruption scandal. It was also recorded in court that the two of them were also having a romantic relationship. According to corruption investigators, Hrynchuk spent several nights with Halushchenko, his predecessor as energy minister.
Unexpectedly by Western observers, in the recordings published so far, even the ministers conducted all conversations exclusively in Russian – despite the ongoing war with Russia and attempts by the authorities to enforce the use of Ukrainian. And meanwhile Ukraine The corrupt elite in this country prefers US dollars.
Authorities published images of stacks of cash in safes, travel bags and – some still wrapped in plastic – in packaging from several US central banks. In one recording, a suspect complains about how difficult it is to smuggle $1.6 million. The video shows a man with two full bags that he is carrying across Kiev during the day.
Zelensky also appeared in an episode when, after a short message from Minditsch, he called Energy Minister Halushchenko and summoned him. The minister also answered this conversation in Russian. “Greetings, Vladimir Alexandrovich (Zelenskyj), greetings, everything is clear, it will be done, it will be done.” Zelensky could not be heard in the published recording.
Minditsch also used the cash to buy a house in Switzerland for about six million dollars. For this purpose, money was handed over in Vienna, in Israel and transfers to Mauritius and Seychelles were discussed.
The published footage is presented like a series of small videos. And just like in the cinema, each scene ends with majestic music and the closing curtain of the theater – “To be continued”.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:251114-930-290993/1
