Overview
- NABU and SAPO searched the Batkivshchyna party offices in Kyiv and opened a pre-trial case into suspected payments to influence parliamentary votes.
- Officials published a phone recording of a voice resembling Yulia Tymoshenko discussing $10,000 per vote and released video showing bundles of cash found during searches.
- The investigation is proceeding under Article 369.4 of the criminal code that covers offering unlawful advantages, with a potential sentence of up to ten years if a conviction is secured.
- Tymoshenko denies wrongdoing, calling the operation a political PR action, alleging armed officers occupied the building and held staff hostage, and saying seized cash were personal savings.
- Authorities say the suspected scheme targeted recent personnel votes where her 25-member faction was pivotal, and the probe follows earlier tensions after her bloc supported moves to curb NABU and SAPO.