Key facts
- President Zelensky stated anti-corruption agencies have no questions for him amid a corruption scandal.
- Iryna Mudra, former deputy head of the President's Office, is implicated in alleged money laundering and illegal real estate seizure.
- Mudra is accused of laundering Hr 150 million ($3.4 million) and transferring funds through Sense Bank.
- The funds were allegedly used to post bail for former Justice and Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko.
- Mudra suggested in leaked tapes that corruption should be controlled rather than fought.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that anti-corruption agencies have no questions for him amidst a recent corruption scandal involving a top official in his administration. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) published recordings on August 19 that allegedly implicate Iryna Mudra, then-deputy head of the President's Office, and other officials in money laundering and the illegal seizure of real estate.
Mudra and others are accused of laundering Hr 150 million ($3.4 million) and transferring the funds through Sense Bank to post bail for former Justice and Energy Minister Herman Halushchenko. Halushchenko faces separate charges of money laundering and organized crime related to the state nuclear power monopoly Energoatom, which is described as the largest corruption investigation of Zelensky's tenure.
Zelensky told journalists on August 22 that he had no further details beyond what was publicly released, which was sufficient to dismiss Mudra. He emphasized that law enforcement and anti-corruption systems must operate independently. "I have no questions from the heads of the anti-corruption agencies. They understand perfectly well that I'm not involved in anything like that. And that is important to me," Zelensky said.
Leaked tapes feature Mudra stating that "corruption shouldn't be fought — it should be controlled," with a partially beeped-out name suggesting a possible link to Kyrylo Budanov, the head of the President's Office and Mudra's former boss. Budanov commented on August 23 that the matter is now "up to the court."
This incident follows a series of corruption scandals that have emerged since the fall, with the President's Office often providing limited comment. In May, former Office Head Andriy Yermak was charged with money laundering related to the construction of a luxury cottage complex, with investigators suggesting some houses were intended for allies, including potentially Zelensky himself, referred to as "Vova" in leaked tapes.