Fugitive MP Odarchenko to be expelled from the Rada’s anti-corruption committee
23 September 2024 13:06
The Verkhovna Rada has registered a resolution to recall fugitive MP Andriy Odarchenko from his position as a member of the Committee on Anti-Corruption Policy. This was reported by MP from the Voice faction, Deputy Chairman of the Tax Committee of the Verkhovna Rada Yaroslav Zheleznyak, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
Zheleznyak noted that Odarchenko has not yet been expelled from the Servant of the People faction.
“The Rada has registered a resolution to expel MP Odarchenko from the Anti-Corruption Committee. By the way, no one has expelled him from the faction yet,” the MP wrote.
He also published the registered resolution.
The MP did not inform the court or the prosecutor about the reasons for his absence. The defence lawyers of the accused also failed to inform the court about the whereabouts of their client and emphasise the lack of communication with him.
According to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), the MP’s car remained in the same place, but the driver lives in the apartment. According to the latter, Odarchenko has not been at home since Tuesday (17 September) and has not been in touch.
In addition, according to border guards, the MP did not officially cross the border.
In view of this, the prosecutor initiated in court the issue of collecting the bail set as a preventive measure for the MP, imposing a monetary penalty on him, and putting him on the wanted list.
The motion to forfeit the bail and change the measure of restraint to a more stringent one will be considered on 23 September 2024.
What Andrii Odarchenko is suspected of
In November 2023, the NABU served Andriy Odarchenko with a notice of suspicion for attempting to bribe Mustafa Nayem, head of the State Agency for Reconstruction, in bitcoins. According to the agency, in return for the money, the MP asked for a decision to allocate money from the fund for the elimination of the consequences of Russian aggression to repair the buildings of the university where the MP was rector at the time.
In addition, the prosecutor’s office published his conversation with Nayem. In it, the MP said that he did not believe in Ukraine’s victory, and that Volodymyr Zelenskyi would be forced to negotiate with Russia, so the president wanted to hold elections before then.
Odarchenko himself stated that he had spoken to Nayem on “various topics” on several occasions, did not offer a bribe, and allegedly asked him to teach him how to use a crypto wallet.
The next day, the court imposed a pre-trial restraint in the form of detention with the possibility of bail in the amount of UAH 15 million.
on 23 November 2023, the Servant of the People suspended Odarchenko’s membership in the faction.
“This is a standard procedure that we apply in such cases. The final decision on him will be made based on the results of the investigation,” said party chairwoman Olena Shulyak.
On 24 November, the suspect exercised his right to be released on bail.
