Key facts
- Ukraine's Prosecutor General, Ruslan Kravchenko, resigned on Monday.
- His resignation followed a raid on his office by anti-corruption investigators.
- The investigation concerns a large-scale money laundering scheme involving illegal call centers.
- Kravchenko denies wrongdoing and claims the allegations are unsubstantiated.
- The scandal involves officials allegedly protecting criminal networks that scam individuals.
- The timing of the revelations coincides with increased Russian attacks on Ukraine.
Ukraine's Prosecutor General, Ruslan Kravchenko, resigned on Monday following a raid on his office by anti-corruption agents investigating a sprawling money laundering scheme. The investigation, led by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (Nabu) and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (Sapo), targets illegal call centers that allegedly defrauded individuals in Ukraine, Russia, and the EU.
Investigators claimed that a senior official within the prosecutor general's office protected the criminal network, receiving substantial bribes. Sources told Ukrainska Pravda newspaper that each call center paid $7,000 monthly in protection money, with hundreds of centers potentially employing around 60,000 people. Nabu investigators reportedly used ladders to enter Kravchenko's office after staff refused them access. The chief suspect was arrested in Lviv, and recordings suggest he was collecting bribes while overseeing repairs at Kravchenko's home.
Kravchenko, who denies wrongdoing, met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy before submitting his resignation letter to Ukraine's parliament. Zelenskyy described the conversation as "fairly long" and emphasized the importance of combating corruption, especially as Ukraine seeks EU membership. This scandal marks the latest in a series of corruption allegations to surface involving individuals close to Zelenskyy's administration, including his former chief of staff and business partners.
The revelations come amid intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine, with overnight strikes on Kyiv killing three people and injuring 19. These attacks followed a brief ceasefire after visits by Donald Trump's envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow and reportedly presented ideas for ending the war. While Zelenskyy expressed hope for progress, the Kremlin maintained its forces were nearing victory. Transparency advocates have described the corruption as "organized crime" and highlighted the technical capabilities of Nabu investigators in uncovering such schemes.