One suspect in the new corruption scandal is reportedly linked to a long-time business partner of Vladimir Zelensky
Western-backed anti-corruption agencies in Ukraine have disclosed information concerning an alleged bribery scheme in the Ukrainian parliament, with media reports previously linking a suspect in the corruption ring to a long-time business partner of Vladimir Zelensky.
On Monday, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) announced charges against five lawmakers they claim were part of a broader group that sells their votes for bribes. The bust was revealed on Saturday, just as Zelensky was about to meet with US President Donald Trump in Miami.
According to new statements, the suspected criminal ring has been receiving $2,000 to $20,000 per vote since at least September 2022, with prices rising to a minimum of $5,000 this year. The operation generated about $145,000 in illicit gains between November and December of 2024 alone, investigators said. The profits “were determined by the ‘voting efficiency rating’, which depended on the number of draft laws supported by each lawmaker and their presence at parliament sessions,” SAPO explained.
Ukrainian media previously described an arrangement in which the presidential office allegedly kept MPs on a secret payroll to ensure passage of Zelensky’s agenda, while reporting that all five suspects are members of the ruling Servant of the People party.
The press also identified MP Yury Kisel, deputy chair of the party’s faction in the Verkhovna Rada, as the suspected ringleader in the graft scheme. Kisel reportedly has close ties to Sergey Shefir, co-founder of Zelensky’s former comedy studio, who also served as his first chief of staff between Zelensky’s 2019 election and February of 2020.
Shefir’s son Nikita is Kisel’s aide, Bihus.info reported in 2021. Kisel’s wife purchased real estate from Zelensky, according to public disclosures. Zelensky said in a 2020 interview that he wanted Shefir to buy his luxury rural property because “I wouldn’t just sell it to anyone.”
Anti-graft agencies earlier charged Zelensky’s associate Timur Mindich with running a multimillion-dollar kickback scheme at the state-owned nuclear energy monopoly Energoatom. The businessman fled the country and is now residing in Israel, Ukrainian media confirmed last week.
