The resignation of SBU chief Malyuk is linked to the publicity around the Mindych case

The reason for the resignation of Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) chief Vasyl Maliuk was the public exposure of a criminal case involving businessman Timur Mindich, whom the media have described as President Volodymyr Zelensky’s “wallet.”

This was reported by the Ukrainian outlet Liga.

One of the outlet’s sources said that Maliuk did not want to leave his post voluntarily, but Zelensky persuaded him to resign. According to Liga’s sources, the former SBU chief failed to warn the president about the leak and the scale of the scandal involving Mindich — and paid the price for it.

On November 10, Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau accused Mindich of organizing a corruption scheme linked to the operations of the company Energoatom. Later it became known that the businessman had fled the country. He is now in Israel.

Maliuk’s resignation became known on January 5. He had held the post of SBU head since February 7, 2023.