On April 29, 2026, the HACC continued examining evidence in the case of former acting head of JSC United Mining and Chemical Company (UMCC) Ruslan Zhurylo and his deputy Yurii Pertsev.

Defense counsel for Pertsev failed to appear at today's hearing, citing a conflicting hearing in another case. The court ruled the absence unjustified, as counsel had been informed of the hearing dates in advance.

The court decided to proceed — specifically, to hear Pertsev's own arguments regarding evidence already examined. This drew an angry response from the defendant: he argued with the court, interrupted the judge, and insisted that proceeding without his lawyer violated his right to a defense. However, since the offence he is charged with is not classified as particularly serious, legal representation is not mandatory. Pertsev ultimately did address the court — in Russian.

Pertsev participated in the hearing remotely from Vienna. Proceedings against the second defendant, Zhurylo, have been suspended since his mobilization in 2023.

The ten-year statute of limitations for the relevant charges is expiring imminently, as the alleged offense was committed between January 20, 2015 and July 31, 2016. The case was scheduled for trial as far back as November 2019 — meaning proceedings have now been ongoing for seven years. 

The SAPO charges former UMCC acting head Ruslan Zhurylo and his deputy Yurii Pertsev with reselling the enterprise's raw materials through intermediaries at below-market prices, causing losses to the state of over $13 million.