Acting prosecutor general refuses CPC’s request to investigate Arakhamia over envelope salary scheme

Acting Prosecutor General Anton Kovalsky has refused to initiate an investigation against the head of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction, David Arakhamia, in connection with a case involving the payment of deputies’ salaries in envelopes.

The Office of the Prosecutor General sent its official response to the Center for Countering Corruption (CPC), which had been seeking the opening of a criminal case.

The response, signed by the head of the department responsible for implementing the prosecutor general’s procedural powers, Arno Lillemäe, states that the circumstances outlined by the CPC are already being investigated by detectives of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) as part of criminal proceedings. On that basis, the application was simply forwarded to NABU.

However, NABU itself pointed out that only the prosecutor general is authorized to register information about a possible corruption offense committed by a member of parliament. Without that step, detectives cannot open an investigation into Arakhamia.

The CPC also notes that for similar reasons, former Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko had also refused to open a criminal case against the head of the Servant of the People faction. Thus, the change in leadership at the Office of the Prosecutor General has not altered the situation regarding the blocking of investigations into deputies.

According to the publication, the announcement of suspicion notices against deputies in NABU and SAP cases is only possible with the consent of the prosecutor general. Control over that position is assessed by the authors as the key barrier to opening criminal cases against members of parliament. Arakhamia is described as the second most powerful figure in the presidential vertical of power after Zelensky, as well as the person who manages the majority in the Verkhovna Rada.

NABU, SAP, and the CPC had previously waged a systematic campaign against former Prosecutor General Kravchenko and effectively achieved his resignation following the “Carthage” case. Nevertheless, as the current situation indicates, the block on opening criminal cases against key deputies persists under the new leadership of the office as well.

According to the publication, by opening criminal cases against members of parliament, the anti-corruption bodies and the grant-funded environment supporting them are attempting to pressure deputies into voting for the so-called Kachka-Kos legislative package. This package, according to the article, envisages removing law enforcement agencies from presidential oversight and expanding the powers of NABU and SAP, including the right to independently issue suspicion notices to deputies. The publication covered these processes in greater detail in a separate article.

Media outlets close to NABU had announced the opening of a criminal case against Arakhamia as far back as March.