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Onyshchenko's gas case: an episode of Kharkiv judge Tetiana Denysiuk

  • Date of commencement of the case: 28/12/2022
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Onyshchenko's gas case: an episode of Kharkiv judge Tetiana Denysiuk Onyshchenko's gas case: an episode of Kharkiv judge Tetiana Denysiuk

Case description

On May 26, 2021, the HACC acquitted Kharkiv judge Tetiana Denysiuk, who was accused of abuse of office during the proceedings on the gas schemes of former MP Onyshchenko who fled Ukraine.

Tetiana Denysiuk is a judge of the Commercial Court of Kharkiv oblast. According to the investigation, in 2016, she adopted a deliberately illegal decision in favor of the Karpatnadrainvest enterprise. 

Back in 2015, the NABU investigated a case of embezzlement during the production and sale of natural gas. The state-owned Ukrgazvydobuvannya was engaged in gas and gas condensate production jointly with Onyshchenko's private companies under joint venture agreements. However, the Cabinet of Ministers then decided to raise the rent that such companies had to pay for the use of subsoil. 

So, in order not to lose profit, the participants in the scheme decided to sell this gas to intermediaries on fictitious exchanges at lower prices. The latter, in turn, sold it to consumers at the market price, and the organizers of the scheme took the difference in value. The losses the state incurred during the year of the scheme's operation amounted to about UAH 3 billion.

Oleksandr Onyshchenko was only one of the organizers, and it was he who controlled the private company Karpatnadrainvest. Later, the NABU seized the fuel received by the company, and in November 2016, Ukrgazvydobuvannya went to court to recover the debt from the company. The private company agreed to pay the debt with a deferred payment plan and filed a counterclaim, asking for all the seized gas to be returned to it.

Denysiuk ruled, in particular, on the basis of a counterclaim where Karpatnadrainvest failed to pay the court fee, which also caused damage to the state. The judge ordered the state-owned enterprise to transfer the seized gas and condensate to the private company and postponed the payment of the debt to Ukrgazvydobuvannya for a year, further reducing the penalty by UAH 40 million. This decision was later overturned in the appellate instance.

The prosecutor's office saw signs of a crime in the actions of Judge Denysiuk, in particular, that she allegedly overstepped her authority and created grounds for overturning the arrest in criminal proceedings in the framework of a commercial case. 

The HACC qualified Denysiuk's actions under Article 364, part 2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The Kharkiv judge was eventually acquitted because, according to the HACC, the accusation was based only on assumptions. The prosecutor, however, asked for a 4-year sentence with a fine and deprivation of the right to hold certain positions.  

The prosecutor also stated that the director of the Karpatnadrainvest enterprise knew and worked with Denysiuk's brother and father. The judge also rejected the recusal of Ukrgazvydobuvannya's lawyer: apparently, this information did not influence the HACC decision.

The appellate instance in response to the prosecutor's complaint overturned the HACC decision and ordered a new trial in the first instance court. In November 2024, the HACC acquitted Denysiuk again due to lack of evidence that her actions constituted a criminal offense.

  • Proceeding No.: 42017000000000011
  • Case No.: 638/12275/18
  • Incriminated: Article 364, part 2, Article 191, part 5, Article 209, part 3
Instance Key parties Instance /Key parties:
HACC
28/12/2022

Panel of judges: Khamzin T.R., Kryklyvyi V.V.

HACC AC
12/07/2021

Panel of judges: Chorna V.V., Kaluhina I.O., Pavlyshyn O.F.

Lawyer: Denysiuka S.F., Vylkov S.V., Podosinova A.O., Liaskovtsia O.V.

Prosecutor: Perov A.V.

HACC
08/10/2019

Panel of judges: Kryklyvyi V.V., Halabala M.V., Nohachevskyi V.V.

Lawyer: Denysiuka S.F., Vylkov S.V., Liaskovtsia O.V., Podosinova A.O., Stovba O.V.

Prosecutor: Perov A.V., Semak I.A.

Infographics

CASE OF TETYANA DENISYUK

Judge Denysiuk allegedly adopted an illegal decision in favor of a company controlled by fugitive ex-MP Onyshchenko, which was involved in a criminal scheme to embezzle money from gas production and sales. At first, Denisyuk was acquitted, but now another trial is underway.

  • December 21, 2016
    Denysiuk as a judge, issued a ruling after considering the claims of Karpatnadrainvest and Ukrgazvydobuvannya. This decision will prompt the prosecutor's office to question the legality of the judge's actions.
  • pic
    March 21, 2018
    the NABU served Denysiuk with a suspicion notice of committing two crimes. One of them was classified under Art. 375 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which was later recognized as unconstitutional
  • May 10, 2018
    an interim measure in the form of a personal commitment was imposed on Denisiuk. At the first attempt to impose an interim measure on Denisyuk, MPs Dobkin and Murayev were ready to bail her out.
  • pic
    May 26, 2021
    the HACC acquitted Judge Denisiuk
  • pic
    On December 5, 2022
    the HACC Appeals Chamber overturned the HACC decision and ordered a new trial in the first instance.
  • November 27, 2024
    The HACC acquitted Denysiuk again

Decisions from the Register

Case No. Court Decision date Decision type
638/12275/18 HACC 08/10/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 05/11/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 05/11/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 05/11/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 05/11/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 10/12/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 10/12/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 10/12/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 10/12/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 17/12/2019
638/12275/18 HACC 27/01/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 27/01/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 28/01/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 28/01/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 28/01/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 06/05/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 14/05/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 19/06/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 08/07/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 06/08/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 06/08/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 02/12/2020
638/12275/18 HACC 26/05/2021 Decision on closing the criminal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC 26/05/2021 Verdicts
638/12275/18 HACC 26/05/2021 Decision on closing the criminal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC 15/06/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 01/07/2021 On leaving the appeal without action
638/12275/18 HACC AC 01/07/2021 On leaving the appeal without action
638/12275/18 HACC AC 01/07/2021 On leaving the appeal without action
638/12275/18 HACC AC 01/07/2021 On leaving the appeal without action
638/12275/18 HACC AC 12/07/2021 Opening of appeal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC AC 19/07/2021 Opening of appeal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC AC 20/07/2021 On the return of the appeal
638/12275/18 HACC AC 20/07/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 23/07/2021 Opening of appeal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC AC 23/07/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 09/08/2021 Completion of the preparation and appointment of the appeal hearing
638/12275/18 HACC AC 17/08/2021 Opening of appeal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC AC 17/08/2021 Opening of appeal proceedings
638/12275/18 HACC AC 20/09/2021 Completion of the preparation and appointment of the appeal hearing
638/12275/18 HACC AC 05/10/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 05/10/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 11/11/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 21/12/2021
638/12275/18 HACC AC 11/08/2022
638/12275/18 HACC AC 05/12/2022 Decision on partial granting of appeals
638/12275/18 HACC AC 05/12/2022 Decision on partial granting of appeals
638/12275/18 HACC 28/12/2022 On the appointment of a preparatory court hearing
638/12275/18 HACC 29/12/2022
638/12275/18 HACC 10/01/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 10/01/2023 On the appointment of a trial
638/12275/18 HACC 10/01/2023 On the appointment of a trial
638/12275/18 HACC 10/01/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 12/01/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 15/03/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 07/04/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 07/04/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 31/05/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 09/06/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 13/06/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 19/07/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 19/07/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 05/09/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 05/09/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 31/10/2023
638/12275/18 HACC 01/07/2024
638/12275/18 HACC 27/11/2024 Verdicts, Decision to cancel the seizure of property