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Case of scandalous ex-judge Mykola Chaus on bribery

  • Date of commencement of the case: 22/11/2021
  • Stage of criminal proceedings: Appeal proceedings
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Case of scandalous ex-judge Mykola Chaus on bribery Case of scandalous ex-judge Mykola Chaus on bribery

Case description

On June 14, 2023, the HACC found Mykola Chaus, former judge of the Dniprovskyi District Court of Kyiv, guilty. He asked for USD 100 thousand for a suspended sentence for a person accused of trading in diphenhydramine. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison with additional penalties.

On October 14, 2002, Mykola Chaus was appointed judge of the Dniprovskyi District Court of Kyiv. However, for most of his time in office, the name of this judge remained unnoticeable. Chaus was talked about when he was considering a motion to change an interim measure for Hennadii Korban in December 2015.

What happened in the Chaus case?

Between 2015 and 2016, Chaus was investigating a case involving pensioner Svitlana Sasevych for the illegal acquisition, storage, and sale of poisonous, potent substances, or narcotic drugs.

In August 2016, NABU detectives exposed Judge Chaus while receiving a USD 150,000 bribe for a suspended sentence against Sasevych for trading in diphenhydramine. The money was found in two glass jars, one of which was dug up on the judge's land plot and the other in his car.

By the time the Verkhovna Rada allowed the judge to be detained, he had already been in Moldova and applied for asylum there. In April 2021, it became known that the ex-judge had been kidnapped in Chisinau. In May, a video appeared in which Chaus said he was safe, but until July 2021, there was no public information about his whereabouts until the judge appeared in the Mazurivka village, Vinnytsia region, wearing only his underwear.

Then Chaus immediately contacted the SSU and reported that he had been the victim of kidnapping, imprisonment, and other crimes. Chaus pleaded not guilty; in court, he claimed that he was provoked by law enforcement officers. 

 

What is Chaus's version of events?

According to Chaus, at the end of February 2016, Svitlana Sasevych’s lawyer came to the ex-judge's office to try to talk about the case. Then he was visited by Taras Oksiuta, judge of the Solomianskyi District Court, who asked to meet with his friend. 

When he arrived at the meeting, Chaus discovered that the friend was Diana Polishchuk, his old acquaintance, former colleague from the Sviatoshynskyi District Court, who told him that she was the daughter of the accused pensioner. There, they allegedly discussed Sasevych's health, then Polishchuk asked to resolve the issue for money, and Chaus allegedly refused.

 

In March 2016, Chaus met for the first time with Oleksandr Polishchuk, also a former colleague, Diana's ex-husband, and a secret agent of the NABU. According to Chaus, during the meetings, Polishchuk tried to link the lending of money to the resolution of the Sasevych case. According to Chaus, Polishchuk had a personal interest and wanted to get a position in the NABU.

Chaus claimed a provocation by Polishchuk. The court found that in another part of the conversation, the NABU agent did go beyond his powers and with his statements encouraged Chaus to continue his criminal activities, and offered to personally remove the obstacles.

After Chaus's detention and interrogation by the NABU, he was allegedly taken from his apartment and handed over to an unknown person in one of Kyiv's underground parking lots, who took him to an apartment in Irpin. Then he ended up in another apartment in Bucha, and then in Moldova. Chaus insisted that Ukrainian intelligence officers were involved in his return to Ukraine, allegedly wanting to obtain testimony against Ukrainian political figures.

The court assessed this testimony critically and considered his stories to be false, for the most part, provided in order to avoid criminal liability for the offense.

HACC judges agreed that Chaus asked for, but did not demand a bribe. In March 2016, he told Diana Polishchuk that for USD 100,000 he was ready to adopt a decision against the pensioner without any real punishment. Subsequently, the ex-judge resorted to some conspiracy, and then refused to do anything at all, because, according to him, he had problems in court. 

But this does not cancel the crime. Therefore, the HACC charged the ex-judge with Art. 368, part 4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, changing the qualification from extortion to asking for a bribe. Receiving USD 150,000 from Polishchuk was recognized as a provocation.

The court sentenced Chaus to 10 years in prison with confiscation of all property and a 3-year ban on holding certain positions. He was taken into custody in the courtroom. Immediately after the verdict was announced, Chaus said that he considered it unjustified and later filed an appeal. 

  • Proceeding No.: 52016000000000073
  • Case No.: 991/7682/21 show all cases hide other cases
  • Other court cases No.: 991/1288/20, 991/1578/20, 760/15443/16-к, 991/3859/20, 991/2787/21, 991/3180/21, 991/3852/21, 991/5204/21, 991/5554/21, 991/6248/21, 991/6242/21, 991/6798/21
  • Incriminated: Article 368, part 1, Article 368, part 3, Article 368, part 4, Article 369, part 3
Instance Key parties Instance /Key parties:
HACC AC
02/02/2022

Panel of judges: Chorna V.V., Pankulych V.I., Panaid I.V., Semennykov O.Yu.

HACC
22/11/2021

Panel of judges: Khamzin T.R., Shyroka K.Yu., Salandiak O.Ya., Voronko V.D., Kruk Ye.V., Voronko V.D., Kravchuk O.O., Bilous I.O.

Lawyer: Sidei O.V., Vyshnevoho O.V., Sabadyn A.V., Chernenka P.S., Korolenka O.L., Chernilevskoho V.H., Denysenka Yu.O.

Prosecutor: Zhovnytska A.V.

Infographics

CASE OF MYKOLA CHAUS

In 2016, ex-judge Mykola Chaus asked for a USD 100,000 bribe for a favorable decision in a case involving a pensioner who sold diphenhydramine. Later, after being exposed, he ended up in Moldova and sought asylum there, from where he was allegedly abducted a few years later. It was only in 2023 that the court announced Chaus's sentence: 10 years in prison.

  • pic
    August 9, 2016
    NABU detectives exposed Chaus while receiving a USD 150,000 bribe, which was later recognized by the court as a provocation
  • September 6, 2016
    The Verkhovna Rada deprived Chaus of his judicial immunity. The Solomianskyi District Court of Kyiv authorized his detention
  • November 2016
    Interpol put Chaus on the wanted list
  • pic
    March 1, 2017
    Chaus was detained in Chisinau. The NABU appealed to the Moldovan Prosecutor's Office regarding the judge’s extradition
  • March 15, 2017
    Moldova denied Chaus political asylum
  • November 28, 2017
    the HCJ dismissed Chaus from the post of judge
  • April 3, 2021
    Chaus was abducted from Chisinau. According to media reports, Ukrainian special services were involved, but the SSU denied this
  • July 30, 2021
    Chaus was found in the village of Mazurivka, Vinnytsia region, wearing only his underwear. The NABU tried to stop the SSU car with Chaus in it in Kyiv
  • August 3, 2021
    the NABU detained ex-judge in Feofaniya hospital
  • August 4, 2021
    the HACC placed Chaus under house arrest
  • February 1, 2022
    the HACC imposed UAH 717,000 bail on Chaus
  • February 8, 2022
    Chaus was released from custody, his wife posted bail
  • pic
    June 14, 2023
    The HACC sentenced Chaus to 10 years in prison with additional penalties

Decisions from the Register

Case No. Court Decision date Decision type
991/1288/20 HACC 11/02/2020
991/1288/20 HACC 11/02/2020
991/1578/20 HACC 16/03/2020
991/1578/20 HACC 16/03/2020
760/15443/16-к HACC AC 19/03/2020 On the appointment of a new trial in the court of the first instance
760/15443/16-к HACC AC 07/04/2020
991/3859/20 HACC 01/06/2020
991/3859/20 HACC 01/06/2020
991/2787/21 HACC 21/04/2021
991/2787/21 HACC 23/04/2021
991/3180/21 HACC 12/05/2021
991/3180/21 HACC 14/05/2021
991/3852/21 HACC 09/06/2021
991/3852/21 HACC 20/07/2021
991/5204/21 HACC 04/08/2021
991/5204/21 HACC 04/08/2021
991/5204/21 HACC AC 09/08/2021 On the appointment of a new trial in the court of the first instance
991/5204/21 HACC 16/08/2021
991/5204/21 HACC 16/08/2021
991/5204/21 HACC AC 16/08/2021
991/5204/21 HACC AC 16/08/2021
991/5204/21 HACC AC 16/08/2021
991/5554/21 HACC 26/08/2021
991/5554/21 HACC 26/08/2021
991/6248/21 HACC 14/09/2021
991/6248/21 HACC 14/09/2021
991/6242/21 HACC 14/09/2021 Decision on temporary access
991/6798/21 HACC 06/10/2021
991/6798/21 HACC 06/10/2021
991/6798/21 HACC AC 13/10/2021 On the appointment of a new trial in the court of the first instance
991/6798/21 HACC AC 18/10/2021
991/6798/21 HACC AC 18/10/2021
991/7682/21 HACC 22/11/2021 On the appointment of a preparatory court hearing
991/7682/21 HACC 26/11/2021
991/7682/21 HACC 26/11/2021 On the appointment of a trial, On changing the interim measure for the accused
991/7682/21 HACC 26/11/2021
991/7682/21 HACC 26/11/2021 On the appointment of a trial, On changing the interim measure for the accused
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 11/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 12/01/2022 On changing the interim measure for the accused
991/7682/21 HACC 12/01/2022 On changing the interim measure for the accused
991/7682/21 HACC 18/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 18/01/2022 Decision on temporary access
991/7682/21 HACC 27/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/01/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 01/02/2022 On changing the interim measure for the accused
991/7682/21 HACC 01/02/2022 On changing the interim measure for the accused
991/7682/21 HACC AC 02/02/2022 On the refusal to open appeal proceedings
991/7682/21 HACC 03/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/02/2022 Decision on temporary access
991/7682/21 HACC 21/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 21/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 21/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 21/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 21/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 21/02/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 01/04/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 19/04/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 19/04/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/05/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/05/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/05/2022 Decision on temporary access
991/7682/21 HACC 03/05/2022 Decision on temporary access
991/7682/21 HACC 03/05/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 03/05/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 16/06/2022 Decision to cancel the seizure of property
991/7682/21 HACC 16/06/2022 Decision to cancel the seizure of property
991/7682/21 HACC 19/07/2022 Decision on temporary access
991/7682/21 HACC 19/07/2022 Decision on temporary access
991/7682/21 HACC 30/08/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 30/08/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/09/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 27/09/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 30/11/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 30/11/2022
991/7682/21 HACC 17/01/2023
991/7682/21 HACC 17/01/2023
991/7682/21 HACC 02/05/2023
991/7682/21 HACC 05/05/2023
991/7682/21 HACC 08/06/2023
991/7682/21 HACC 08/06/2023
991/7682/21 HACC 14/06/2023 Verdicts
991/7682/21 HACC AC 24/07/2023 Opening of appeal proceedings
991/7682/21 HACC AC 11/08/2023 Completion of the preparation and appointment of the appeal hearing
991/7682/21 HACC AC 18/10/2023 Decision on the consideration of a recusal

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