Ukrainian Prosecutor General Kravchenko resigns after corruption investigation

Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko has resigned amid corruption investigations and searches. On Monday evening, after a meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Kravchenko wrote on his Telegram channel that his resignation was a “political decision.” He wanted to prevent “the office from being misused for political disputes”. However, his attitude to the allegations themselves remains unchanged.

At the weekend, the Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities made the results of their investigation public. They suspect the head of the cybersecurity department of the Attorney General's Office of having, together with four accomplices, covered up telephone fraud call centers and profited from their income. Such call centers are a widespread phenomenon in Ukraine. Employees of these professional fraud companies call people in assigned roles in order to use pressure and manipulation to trick them out of their savings.

The anti-corruption authorities distributed photos of confiscated luxury cars and a safe with cash. A bail of the equivalent of almost 2.5 million euros was set for the head of the cybersecurity department. The public prosecutor's office questions the legality of the measures. Kravchenko initially rejected calls to resign.

The General Prosecutor's Office, like the domestic secret service SBU, is considered politically controlled, and Kravchenko is considered a loyal follower of the president. Both agencies played a significant role in the crackdown on the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Special Prosecutor's Office (SAP) last year. At that time, the Ukrainian parliament quickly passed a law that subordinated the SAP to the Prosecutor General's Office. Only after violent protests at home and abroad did Parliament reverse the law.