The High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) has refused to remove First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food Taras Vysotsky from office.
The decision was made on September 25 by investigating judge of the High Anti-Corruption Court Oleh Fedorov.
“The motion of the NABU detective to remove the suspect Taras Vysotsky from office is dismissed,” the judge said.
He clarified that the decision can be appealed to the Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court within five days of its announcement. The decision comes into force after the deadline for filing an appeal, if no such appeal has been filed. If an appeal is filed, the decision, if not overturned, will come into force after the decision of the court of appeal.
The text of the decision will be announced on October 2, 2023.
In addition to the accused Vysotskyi, the prosecution and defense, the courtroom was attended by a number of representatives of agricultural associations, including Vadym Chaharovskyi, Chairman of the Union of Dairy Enterprises of Ukraine, Rodion Rybchynskyi, Director of the PU “Millers of Ukraine” Rodion Rybchynsky, Director General of the Ukroliyaprom Association Stepan Kapshuk, Acting Chairman of the Board of Ukrtsukr Nazar Mykhailovyn, Director of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Forum NGO Maria Didukh, and others.
As reported, on August 24, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) accused the First Deputy Minister of Agrarian Policy of Ukraine Vysotsky of misuse of UAH 62.5 million in the procurement of food to meet the needs of the state during martial law.
“These food products were intended as humanitarian aid for the population of Donetsk, Kherson, Sumy, Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv, Khmelnytsky, Dnipro and Poltava regions and the city of Kyiv,” the statement said.
On August 31, the HACC imposed on Vysotsky a pre-trial restraint in the form of bail in the amount of UAH 805 thousand. In addition, he was imposed procedural obligations: to appear at the request of the detective, prosecutor and court; not to leave Kyiv without permission. Kyiv without the permission of the detective, prosecutor and court; to notify the detective, prosecutor or court of any changes in his place of residence and work; to refrain from communicating with the other suspect, the former Deputy Minister of Economy, and witnesses; to deposit his passport(s) for traveling abroad and other documents entitling him to leave and enter Ukraine with the relevant state authorities.
The obligations are valid until October 24, 2023.
