Case description
On October 12, 2023, the HACC, based on a plea agreement, convicted lawyer Oleh Horetskyi, who helped former Supreme Court Head Vsevolod Kniaziev receive a USD 2.7 million bribe. He got a suspended sentence with a 3-year probationary period.
Horetskyi, in collusion with notary Kyrylo Horburov, acted as an intermediary in the transfer of a bribe to the leadership of the Supreme Court. In March–April 2023, Horetskyi received USD 2.7 million (USD 1.8 million for Supreme Court judges and the rest for intermediaries). Later, Horetskyi and Kniaziev were exposed while receiving the last tranche of USD 450,000.
The investigation believes that the money was transferred in the interests of oligarch Kostiantyn Zhevaho, who wanted to obtain a court decision and keep the shares of the Poltava Mining and Processing Plant. The former owners of the Mining and Processing Plant wanted to return the shares that Zhevaho bought back in 2002.
Interestingly, during the search, Horetskyi fled the apartment, and investigators later found him in another room, hiding in a closet.
Horetskyi was charged with Article 369, part 4 and Article 190, part 4 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The lawyer pleaded guilty and pledged to transfer UAH 21 million to a special account in the United24 Foundation. On the basis of a plea agreement, he got a 5-year suspended sentence with a probationary period of three years.
