HACC orders NBU to investigate banks’ refusals to accept bail for former deputy head of the President’s Office Iryna Mudra

The High Anti-Corruption Court has found a violation of the rights of former deputy head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Iryna Mudra and ordered the National Bank of Ukraine to determine why banks are refusing to accept bail for her release.

This was reported by Mudra’s lawyers from the law firm Miller.

According to lawyer Masi Nayem, 15 banks refused to accept the bail set by the court, and Mudra remains in custody.

“15 banks refused to accept the bail set by the court. The person is still in custody simply because the banks won’t process the payment,” — Nayem wrote on Facebook.

The defense waited for some time, believing the delay was related to financial monitoring requirements, but was ultimately forced to go to court. The lawyers noted that banks and payment services are unlawfully refusing to process the payment “solely because the payment description contains the word ‘bail’ and the recipient is a HACC account.”

The defense’s complaint was granted on Thursday by a HACC investigating judge. The court found a violation of the rights of a person held in a pre-trial detention center and ordered the National Bank of Ukraine within 24 hours to fulfill four requirements: to verify whether banks are indeed blocking such payments; if the refusals are unjustified — to take measures to ensure the bail payment is processed; to provide the court and the defense with all letters and recommendations sent to banks regarding payments with the description “bail,” as well as any reports received about mass refusals; and to report on the results of the review.

Earlier the same day, the NBU reported on a meeting between the head of the Financial Monitoring Department, Anna Lipska, and responsible bank employees, at which this issue was discussed. Following the meeting, the NBU listed the reasons for refusals cited by the banks themselves: the payer’s lack of documentary confirmation of the sources of funds, including cash; the splitting of bail deposit transactions; and the depositing of funds using shell companies. In addition, banks cited reputational risks due to the negative media coverage surrounding the issue, as well as the need for time to conduct a detailed analysis of transactions and obtain additional documents. The NBU promised to prepare detailed guidance for banks in the near future based on the results of supervisory actions regarding bail deposits.

On August 25, HACC, in the “Forrest Gump” case of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), chose pre-trial detention as the restraint measure for Mudra, with an alternative bail of 20 million hryvnias. The essence of the charges is an alleged attempt to launder 150 million hryvnias to pay bail for a defendant in another NABU and SAP case, “Midas.”