Key NABU witness accused by police of ordering kidnapping

Maksym Mykytas, the Kyiv real estate developer
currently cooperating with anti-corruption authorities, was named a suspect on
Dec. 29 by the National Police in ordering an alleged kidnapping and extortion
attempt that occurred on Dec. 8. Mykytas has been under house arrest since Dec.
2. The alleged kidnapping was organized by a criminal gang leader currently
being held under detention. Its four gangsters met with the kidnapping victim,
a lawyer representing Mykytas, allegedly took control of his automobile and
forced him to write a promissory note for an USD 800K debt. They were
apprehended by police within several hours, who freed the kidnapping victim.
The police said they will request that Mykytas is detained under bail during
the period of investigation, the pravda.com.ua news site said.

In response to the allegations, the National
Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) – with whom Mykytas has been cooperating – said
on its Facebook page it is concerned with the actions of police, which may be
placing pressure on their witness. The bureau said it doesn’t have access to
the evidence behind the allegations. However, it reminded the public that
Mykytas has given the NABU revealing information about corruption at the
highest levels of government, resulting in a key deputy in the President’s
Office – Oleh Tatarov – being named a suspect in serious crime.

“These events prompt concern about the possibility of
the use of measures of a criminal legal character in order to block the
investigations of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the illegal pressure
being applied against the witness with the goal of aiding those he has
identified in avoiding the anticipated responsibility before the law,” the NABU
statement said.

Recall, Mykytas has agreed to cooperate with
NABU authorities in their investigation of an alleged
corruption scheme, and the cover up, involving his defunct construction
company, UkrBud, and the National Guard. Among those high-ranking authorities
identified by Mykytas to be involved in the scheme’s cover up is Tatarov, whom
he accused of attempting to bribe an Internal Affairs Ministry official to
falsify evidence in the scheme. This development, in which a high-profile
witness is offering incriminating evidence to investigators against
high-ranking officials in exchange for leniency, has been widely acknowledged
as a precedent in Ukrainian law enforcement.

Zenon Zawada: We lean
towards believing the NABU version of this development, rather than what the
National Police is alleging against Mykytas. One reason is the NABU is pursuing
a sensitive investigation affecting very powerful people. It’s possible that
Mykytas could implicate more high-ranking officials in his cooperation with
NABU authorities, which is prompting the sudden National Police investigation
against him. But our skepticism is also based on such details like Mykytas
being under house arrest when allegedly ordering a kidnapping, which would be a
highly reckless move if it happened.

So Tatarov continues to play a central role in
Ukraine’s latest battle to establish rule of law at the highest echelons, which
is critical in setting an example for the courts and law enforcement at the
lower levels. We have consistently said that rule of law won’t emerge in
Ukraine without it being applied to everyone equally, particularly those who
are most powerful and wealthy. For this to happen, the NABU needs to have the
backing of the president to perform its functions without interference. This
support from Zelensky is passive at best, requiring persistent pressure from Western
authorities.