Semen Kryvonos, Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), disclosed how many cases the Bureau had closed over the past few years, even after suspects had already been officially notified of suspicion during the investigations.
He shared this information in an interview with Ukrinform.
“In 2021, the NABU closed six criminal cases with declared suspicions; in 2022 – eleven, in 2023 – six, and last year only one such proceeding was closed,” said Kryvonos.
According to him, it is standard legal practice to initiate a case, examine all the facts, and close the case if no evidence of a crime is found.
Kryvonos noted that a portion of the cases are initiated by rulings of investigative judges — not only from the High Anti-Corruption Court, but from other courts as well, which obligate the NABU to open criminal investigations.
The majority of cases are closed due to the so-called Lozovyi amendments, when the pretrial investigation deadlines expire.
“Among the cases we closed in 2021–2022 are ‘regressive cases’ — investigations transferred to the NABU based on jurisdiction. Some of them came to us from the Prosecutor General’s Office in 2019, after its pretrial investigative powers ended,” Kryvonos added.
He emphasized that investigators must have the courage not only to declare suspicions, but also to close proceedings if the investigation shows no evidence of a criminal offense.
As previously reported, the NABU initiated 658 criminal proceedings in 2024.
Source: NABU Chief: some high-profile cases closed despite suspect notifications
