Ex-deputy head of the OP was served a notice of suspicion
22 May 2024 14:34
Law enforcement officers have served a notice of suspicion of illicit enrichment on the former Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, Andriy Smirnov. This was reported by Ukrayinska Pravda, citing its own sources in law enforcement, according to [Kommersant]
Smirnov personally confirmed the delivery of the suspicion.
“I confirm the media reports that I have been served with a notice of suspicion. The suspicion is not from the SBU, but from the NABU. This is the first thing. Second. This is an event that I have been expecting for a long time, given that it was announced almost six months before today in all possible ways. The serving of the notice of suspicion and the search took place quickly and delicately – I have no comments to make about the detectives. For me, nothing unusual happened. These are the modern realities of politics in Ukraine,”
– smrnov told the newspaper.
He added that he was convinced of his innocence and would prove it by all means available.
Smirnov served as deputy head of the Presidential Office from September 2019 to March 2024. It is believed that he was in charge of law enforcement and judicial systems and legal policy in general.
Prior to that, Smirnov was a member of the Dnipro Regional Council, and before that, an assistant to MPs Valeriy Karpuntsov and Andriy Denysenko. In 2014, he ran for the Verkhovna Rada, but did not win.
Prior to his political career, he headed the legal department of the State Committee for the State Material Reserve, was deputy director of the SBU’s economic support department, and head of the land resources department in Zaporizhzhia. He graduated from the Law Faculty of the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
In February 2023, Ukrayinska Pravda published an investigation about Andriy Smirnov’s brother, Ihor Smirnov, who bought luxury real estate, land and cars at below-market prices.
After that, on 29 March, Smirnov was dismissed from the OPU.
