Donbas terrorism suspect Yefremov released from house arrest

A Luhansk district court released from house arrest on
Dec. 17 Oleksandr Yefremov, the former head of the Party of Regions
parliamentary faction who faces a series of criminal charges that include state
treason, separatism and creating a terrorist organization, the pravda.com.ua
news site reported, citing a court judge. Rather than being under 24-hour house
arrest, Yefremov assumed a personal commitment to fulfill several
responsibilities, the report said, which include appearing in court and not
leaving Kyiv without the court’s permission. He also is forbidden to speak with
witness and experts in his criminal cases. Yefremov’s electronic bracelet was
removed, but his passport wasn’t returned, the report said.

Recall, Yefremov was arrested on July 30, 2016 based
on alleged direct evidence that he helped organize and support the Luhansk
People’s Republic terrorist organization, according to then-Prosecutor General
Yuriy Lutsenko. He was subsequently named a suspect in criminal cases of
misappropriating property of the Luhanskvuhillia mining company and acting to
change the territorial boundaries of Ukraine, among others. At the time, Lutsenko said the severity of the charges
don’t allow for Yefremov to be released on bail or house arrest. In October
2016, a rival Luhansk power broker, Volodymyr Landik, testified in a separate
court trial that Yefremov had cooperated with Russian authorities in planning
the military invasion of the Luhansk region and divvying up property
afterwards, having been reportedly promised control of the region by Russian
President Putin. After spending nearly three years in a jail awaiting trial,
Yefremov was released under house arrest in July.

Zenon Zawada: Yefremov’s
fate is a very strong litmus test of what to expect from the Zelensky
administration in the sphere of rule of law. Yefremov was the most high-profile
persona arrested and brought to court under the Poroshenko administration. Yet
it’s been more than three years since Yefremov was detained, and he has not
even faced a criminal trial for very serious charges (and disturbing evidence).
Indeed, he was not even formally charged, only named a suspect in a series of
cases.

Prosecuting someone as deeply mixed up in Donbas
separatism as Yefremov should be a no-brainer for the Zelensky administration.
It would demonstrate its commitment to fighting Russian-backed terrorism in
Ukraine and targeting criminals of all political convictions, not only
nationalists. And yet, rather than progress being made in the criminal cases
against Yefremov, this suspected criminal has gradually attained more freedom (having
been released from detention in July). 

Very often, positive gains that seem to be made in
the sphere of rule of law under Zelensky are offset by developments like these,
in which a high-profile suspect is able to evade trial. Therefore, we can’t be
enthusiastic about the prospects for improved rule of law under the Zelensky
administration. With Ukraine’s courts in such decrepit condition, and with
local courts so easy to influence by powerful people like Yefremov, the
Zelensky administration needs to take a proactive role in high-profile cases
like these to convince the public that rule of law and fighting corruption are
priorities.