Case description
On March 25, 2025, the HACC found MP Anatolii Hunko guilty of inciting bribery and attempting to misappropriate someone's property through deceit, e.g., committing fraud.
Anatolii Hunko is an MP of the 9th convocation who was expelled from the Servant of the People faction after a corruption scandal. At the time of the crime, he was the chairman of the Temporary Investigation Commission of the Verkhovna Rada, tasked with investigating corruption in state-owned enterprises, institutions, and organizations of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine (NAAS).
According to the prosecution, in 2023, Hunko, together with Ihor Kalinichenko (a lawyer and assistant to the MP on a voluntary basis), deceived the entrepreneur. They offered him the use of 1,700 hectares of land from the state enterprise of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences. For this, they demanded $130 per hectare, totaling $221,000. The company representative was required to transfer $85,000 of this amount in advance, before the start of land cultivation. Hunko allegedly had to share the bribe he received with himself, the president of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, employees of the National Police, and the chairman of the Rivne RMA to avoid obstructing the activities of the entrepreneur's company. Ivasyk arranged a meeting with the entrepreneur and, leveraging his acquaintances, tried to convince him of his own “connections” as well as those allegedly held by Hunko with the mentioned individuals. Hunko explained that the director of the state-owned enterprise would be appointed by a person under his control, who would then sign contracts for land cultivation with the agricultural enterprise. The MP promised that the head of the Rivne RMA would not interfere with the company's activities, provided he received the appropriate land plots. In reality, Hunko had no intention of influencing anyone and just sought to deceive the entrepreneur and take his money.
However, according to the defense, the prosecution's version is not supported by the evidence collected. The defense lawyers requested the acquittal of the MP, citing a lack of evidence of a criminal offense and alleging provocation by law enforcement agencies.
During the court debate, the prosecutor rejected the defense's arguments regarding provocation, referring to the evidence presented during the trial. In addition, employees of the NAAS confirmed that the appointment of the head of the state-owned enterprise followed the general procedure, without the influence of any officials, including Hunko. There is no evidence of abuse of influence in Hunko's actions, as the bribe was intended to be provided directly to him as an official, according to the accused's plan. Therefore, Hunko and his accomplices, in fact, deceived the entrepreneur, claiming that they had resolved this issue. Therefore, these actions were qualified as fraud.
Hunko himself did not deny the existence of the scheme but claimed it was a provocation and requested to be acquitted.
On March 25, 2025, the HACC panel of judges found him guilty of committing criminal offenses under Article 15, Part 2; Article 28, Part 2; Article 190, Part 4; Article 27, Part 4; Article 15, Part 4; Article 369, Part 4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
Interestingly, Hunko was already prosecuted in another case, which was later closed. In June 2020, he filed a claim for moral damages due to illegal harassment, citing mental suffering, loss of business reputation, and negative changes in his personal life that affected his public and political activities. In December of the same year, the Pecherskyi District Court ruled to award monetary compensation for non-pecuniary damage in the amount of UAH 2 million on Hunko's claim.
