MP Kuzminykh, accused of bribery, missed 22 court hearings in his case - HACC
Kyiv • UNN
MP Kuzminykh systematically fails to appear in court in the bribery case. Out of 86 meetings, 22 were disrupted due to his absence, which may indicate a delay in the process.
People's Deputy Serhiy Kuzminykh, accused of bribery, systematically fails to appear in court. Of the 86 court hearings scheduled in his case, 22 hearings were disrupted due to the non-appearance of the MP himself, which is almost every fourth. This was reported by the High Anti-Corruption Court in response to a request from UNN.
The criminal proceedings against Kuzminykh on charges of receiving undue advantage have been pending in court since September 2022.
The failure of the accused People's Deputy to attend court hearings was due, in particular, to the latter's activities as a People's Deputy, the accused's stay in hospital or due to temporary disability
It is emphasized that the court checked the reasons for the defendant's non-appearance each time by sending relevant requests, because his presence at the court hearing is an "undeniable obligation." The HACC also stressed that they repeatedly sent letters to the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada informing about the scheduled court hearings in the Kuzminykh case so that this would be taken into account in the MP's work planning.
However, from Kuzminykh's side, it looks like a delay in the process. The court checks the reasons for non-appearance at each hearing, but the very fact that the hearings are systematically disrupted speaks for itself.
In addition, it is worth recalling that it is not only the accused MP who ignores court hearings. His lawyer has also repeatedly missed court because he preferred "other procedural actions".
MP Kuzminykh was exposed for receiving a bribe in early 2022. All these years, he has been actively using the rights of a parliamentarian, traveling on "business trips" and systematically ignoring justice, probably hoping to avoid it. Is it normal that a People's Deputy accused of bribery simply does not attend almost every fourth hearing, and the reasonable terms of the criminal proceedings simply expire?
Let us remind you
Earlier, Serhiy Kuzminykh repeatedly ignored the hearing of the High Anti-Corruption Court under the pretext of a business trip to Moldova to strengthen inter-parliamentary cooperation. As UNN explained to the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, the MP was not obliged to surrender his foreign passports and inform the prosecution about traveling abroad.
Former Deputy Prosecutor General, lawyer Oleksiy Bahanets, in a comment to UNN, noted that the prosecution should ask the court to change Kuzminykh's measure of restraint to detention for his failure to fulfill his procedural duties.
Let's add
People's Deputy, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Activities of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Health Serhiy Kuzminykh was exposed "red-handed" while receiving an illegal benefit of 558 thousand hryvnias. According to the investigation, he received the funds for facilitating the signing of contracts between private companies and one of the hospitals in the Zhytomyr region for the supply of medical equipment.
At the end of January 2022, NABU recorded the transfer of money and published a video about it. In it, a person with a voice similar to Kuzminykh promises his assistance and adds that he can resolve issues with all medical institutions in the region.
On January 31, 2022, then Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova signed a suspicion for him.
Serhiy Kuzminykh was not detained due to "deputy immunity", but he ignored interrogations, which is why he was put on the wanted list. After several days of "hiding", the MP was finally detained to choose a measure of restraint.
In May 2022, Kuzminykh, who, we remind you, is suspected of receiving more than half a million hryvnias in bribes, was chosen as a preventive measure in the form of a bail of 49 thousand 600 hryvnias. Of course, the bail was paid for the people's choice.
In September 2022, the indictment in the case against Kuzminykh was sent to the HACC for consideration on the merits. The stage of evidence examination is currently underway. During this time, the MP repeatedly ignored court hearings.
