On June 22, 2026, MP Serhii Kuzminyh — charged with trading in influence — once again failed to appear at his HACC hearing. The defense filed a motion to adjourn, citing Kuzminyh's official trip to Spain, where he is purportedly meeting with the leadership of the health committees of both chambers of the Spanish parliament — the Congress of Deputies and the Senate — on the instructions of the Verkhovna Rada Deputy Speaker. The trip runs from June 22 to 26.

The hearing was adjourned. The court decided to involve Kuzminyh's new defense counsel in the consideration of the SAPO prosecutor's motion to replace the defendant's preventive measure with pre-trial detention.

It also emerged that the court has referred the matter of Kuzminyh's lawyer to the Qualification and Disciplinary Commission of the Bar for disciplinary proceedings — on June 15 the lawyer failed to appear at a hearing because he was engaged in investigative and procedural actions in Zhytomyr Region.

It is worth noting that the court has been unable to conduct hearings for a considerable time: the previous session was adjourned, two hearings this week were disrupted, and the examination of defense witnesses remains on hold.

This is far from the first time the MP or his counsel have missed hearings for one reason or another. The court has already fined the defendant multiple times for non-appearance and complained about his lawyer to the Bar Commission on more than one occasion. This pattern may indicate deliberate attempts to delay proceedings until the statute of limitations expires in January 2027.

MP Serhii Kuzminyh is charged with trading in influence during the procurement of medical equipment for hospitals in Zhytomyr Region. He allegedly received a UAH 558,000 bribe from a representative of a private company in exchange for securing a tender win for ultrasound systems.