Suspicion of sexual assault against female students: court arrests scandalous director Bilous

The Pechersk District Court of Kyiv remanded in custody without the possibility of bail Andriy Bilous, the former artistic director of the Kyiv Academic Young Theater and a lecturer at KNUTKiT named after Karpenko-Kary, who is suspected of sexual violence against female students, UNN reports.

The court applied a pre-trial restraint measure to Bilous in the form of detention without the right to bail until December 17.

The prosecution insisted on applying a pre-trial restraint measure to the former director of the "Young Theater" Andriy Bilous in the form of detention without the possibility of bail.

Context

The day before, on October 21, law enforcement officers conducted searches at the home of Andriy Bilous, the former artistic director of the Kyiv Academic Young Theater and a lecturer at KNUTKiT named after Karpenko-Kary.

Subsequently, Bilous was notified of suspicion of sexual violence against female students.

Prosecutor General of Ukraine Ruslan Kravchenko reacted to the case of former director of the "Young Theater" Andriy Bilous, who was notified of suspicion of sexual violence against female students today, and stated that every crime will have consequences.

"We understand how difficult it is for victims to decide to speak out. In most similar cases, people remain silent due to fear, shame, or distrust. But this particular case became a turning point: the courage of one girl made it possible to uncover other episodes of harassment that became part of the pre-trial investigation. It's time to frankly say - harassment exists in Ukraine and, as a rule, it always goes hand in hand with silence. Don't be silent!" he emphasized.

What Bilous is accused of

The first to publicly report harassment was the director's former student, Sofia Sapozhnik. The girl claims that the man asked her to send intimate photos and insisted on discussing sexual fantasies. According to her, the former head sent intimate photos of other girls to students. After that, a number of other accusations of a similar nature against Bilous appeared.

In January 2025, Karpenko-Kary University appealed to the police with a request to check the disseminated information and give it a legal assessment. In the same month, Bilous was suspended from work at the university.

In February, investigators of the Shevchenkivskyi police department opened criminal proceedings under Article 153 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - sexual violence.

On the same day, the Kyiv City State Administration announced its intention to suspend him from his official duties at the Young Theater.

At the same time, a protest action took place near the Young Theater against the decision of the Kyiv City State Administration to leave Bilous as director. The participants expressed support for 46 theater employees who demanded his suspension.

Bilous himself denies all accusations.