Ukrainian MP Odarchenko put on international wanted list

The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) announced this on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

"On September 19, HACC granted the petition of a SAPO prosecutor and placed on the national and international wanted list a people's deputy who is accused of giving an illegal benefit to the head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development and who did not appear before the High Anti-Corruption Court on September 18," the post reads.

The MP did not inform the court or the prosecutor about the reasons for his absence. The defense team of the accused were also unable to inform the court about the whereabouts of their client and said there was no contact with him, SAPO said.

Taking this into account, the prosecutor in the court proposed transferring to the state the bail that was chosen as a measure of restraint for the MP, imposing a monetary penalty on him, and placing him on the wanted list.

Petitions on collecting bail and changing the measure of restraint to a stricter one will be considered on September 23.

On July 25, 2024, HACC started a substantive review of the case concerning MP Andriy Odarchenko who was accused of bribing Mustafa Nayyem, the then head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine.

The lawmaker offered the official a bribe in bitcoins, equivalent to $10,000 at the time of the transaction, for assistance in making a decision on the allocation of funds from the Fund for Eliminating the Consequences of Armed Aggression to repair the buildings of a university where the parliamentarian holds the position of rector (the contract has been suspended). The proposed amount of the bribe was supposed to be 8% of the amount of financing.

On September 18, SAPO appealed to HACC with a request to grant the petition to place Odarchenko on the international wanted list and collect UAH 15 million of his bail in favor of the state.

Photo: Andriy Odarchenko / Facebook