Businessman Vaganyan says he has evidence that former SBU chief Bakanov took multi-million-dollar bribes from him in U.S. dollars

Businessman Serhii Vaganyan said he has photo and video evidence showing that former head of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) Ivan Bakanov took bribes from him and other entrepreneurs totaling tens of millions of dollars.

He said this during a meeting of the Verkhovna Rada’s Temporary Investigative Commission on investigating violations in the defense sphere and of anti-corruption legislation.

“I have audio, photo, and video recordings of how Bakanov received illegal monetary benefits from me and other people who are still afraid to talk about it,” the businessman said.

Vaganyan added that the money obtained from entrepreneurs was then passed by Bakanov to Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

He also claimed that the SBU chief mentioned Timur Mindich as his friend.

The businessman further alleged that the former SBU head left the country on the eve of Russia’s invasion using a cover passport. Therefore, border guards have no official record of his departure.

“He crossed the border—this is 100% information. I am sure he left using a cover passport,” Vaganyan said.

In mid-January, Vaganyan, in an interview with former MP Boryslav Bereza, who is close to Petro Poroshenko, accused Bakanov of corruption. He said he had handed over not only money to Bakanov and other then-SBU leaders, but also expensive cars and real estate.

Bakanov denies the accusations and says they are part of a pressure campaign against Zelenskyy aimed at forcing him to make concessions in negotiations with Russia.

Soon after Vaganyan’s high-profile statements, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said that police were looking for Bakanov to invite him to a meeting of the Rada commission investigating corruption.