Former Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko did not show up at the State Bureau of Investigations on Thursday, where he had been summoned to be questioned as a witness in an inquiry into the organization of the illegal crossing of the Ukrainian border. “Poroshenko did not appear for questioning on Thursday,” State Bureau of Investigations press secretary Anzhelika Ivanova told Interfax-Ukraine.
Poroshenko was summoned to undergo investigative procedures in a criminal inquiry regarding the possible organization of the illegal transfer of individuals across the Ukrainian border using fake documents, she said.
“Investigators from the State Bureau of Investigations will look into reports alleging that the ex-president arranged the illegal transfer [of individuals] across the Ukrainian border using knowingly false documents. In addition, it will look into the possibility that customs and border officials might have entered knowingly false information in official documents to ensure the crossing of the border,” the statement says.
The pretrial inquiry has been opened on counts of official forgery, illegal transfer of individuals across the Ukrainian border, and the use of a knowingly fake passport.
The case concerns Poroshenko’s trip to the Maldivian Islands.
