Tymoshenko faces up to 10 years in prison: NABU has concluded its investigation
8 April 10:30
On April 8, Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office announced the completion of a pre-trial investigation into the case of the leader of one of the parliamentary factions in the Verkhovna Rada, who is suspected of offering improper benefits to members of parliament. The statement did not name the individual, but case materials indicate that the person in question is Yulia Tymoshenko, leader of the Batkivshchyna party and parliamentary faction, according to "Komersant Ukrainian"
What NABU and SAPO reported
According to NABU, the investigation established that in December 2025, the suspect began negotiating with individual parliamentarians regarding a system of rewards for loyal voting. This involved a permanent cooperation mechanism with advance payments, and the MPs were to follow voting instructions—to support decisions, vote against, abstain, or not participate in the vote.
In January 2026, the leader of the parliamentary faction was notified of the charges.
The pre-trial investigation is now complete, and the defense has been granted access to the case files. This stage precedes the submission of the indictment to the court.
What Tymoshenko is suspected of
On January 13, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office announced that the leader of one of the Verkhovna Rada factions had been caught offering unlawful benefits to MPs from other political parties in exchange for voting “for” or “against” specific bills.
The SAPO’s statement emphasizes that this is a preliminary legal assessment, and only a court can make final conclusions. The preliminary charge is Part 4 of Article 369 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (offering, promising, or providing an unlawful benefit to a public official), which carries a penalty of 4 to 8 years in prison.
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On January 16, the High Anti-Corruption Court imposed a preventive measure on her in the form of bail in the amount of 33 million hryvnias.
On January 23 , the specified amount was paid in full by ten individuals. The amount of individual payments ranged from 180,000 to 8 million hryvnias.
What does the completion of the pre-trial investigation mean?
The completion of the pre-trial investigation means that NABU detectives and SAPO prosecutors consider the evidence gathered sufficient to proceed to the next stage. After the defense has reviewed the case materials, the prosecutor may submit the indictment to the court.
In other words, the case has moved from the active investigation phase to the pretrial phase. It is at this stage that the defense gains access to the case materials, and the decision is then made regarding the transfer of the case to the High Anti-Corruption Court.
What punishment could be imposed
The suspect faces imprisonment for a term of 5 to 10 years with confiscation of property.
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Tymoshenko has been under investigation on multiple occasions
Yulia Tymoshenko, former prime minister and leader of the Batkivshchyna party, has, as is well known, already been under investigation—and on multiple occasions.
She was first sent to a pretrial detention center during Leonid Kuchma’s presidency in 2001 on charges of gas smuggling. But she spent only about 40 days there.
In 2011, after Viktor Yanukovych came to power, she was accused of exceeding her authority while signing an agreement with Russia’s Gazprom in 2009.
As a result, the court found her guilty and sentenced her to seven years in prison. Tymoshenko spent two and a half years in prison—from August 2011 to February 2014. She was released after Yanukovych fled to Russia.
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