Ukraine arrests 23 former tax officials in corruption sweep

Over 2,000 police and military prosecutors were involved in a Ukraine-wide operation against corrupt tax officials on May 24. The action included 454 raids in 15 oblasts and resulted in 23 arrests. RFE/RL reports that the accused are former high-ranking tax officials who prosecutors claim helped the Yanukovych government commit nearly UAH 97 bln. This amount equals approximately USD 4 bln at the current exchange rate, or roughly USD 23 bln at mid-2013 rates.

Chief Military Prosecutor Anatoliy Matios told reporters that the operation was only the beginning of such actions related to the inquiry into government fraud under former president Viktor Yanukovych and Income and Tax Ministry head Oleksandr Klymenko. According to Interfax-Ukraine, Matios stated that, “In the course of the criminal investigation we can see detaining and charging employees of the Prosecutor General’s Office, Ukraine’s State Security Service, and employees of the State Tax Administration.”

James Hydzik: While the operation itself is impressive, civil society in Ukraine will be watching the proceedings with great interest and at the same time asking why current officials are not facing the same pressure. We expect the international community to be asking similar questions. This administration continues to chip away at the edges of corruption but it is unlikely to satisfy either those who understand the need to break the back of corruption here or those such as the IMF who have tied substantial aid to the effort.