Kropyvnytskyi judge case goes to court

On Jan. 13, 2023, NABU and SAPO filed an indictment against the head of a Kirovohrad region district court, who had been caught accepting a USD 1,000 bribe, as well as two assistant judges. The actions of the accused fall under Part 2 Art. 28, Part 3 Art. 369-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, while those of the assistant judges also fall under Part 3 Art. 358 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

As established, the judge requested the money to influence another judge not to bring a person to justice. To this end, he involved two assistant judges from another court. To create the appearance of fulfilling their promise, they drew up a fake court decision allegedly on behalf of the judge who had to consider the case.

In August 2022, the head of the court was caught red-handed. In September 2022, all participants in the crime were notified of suspicion. In January 2023, the investigation was completed.

According to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is considered non-guilty in the commission of a crime and cannot be subject to criminal punishment until he or she is found guilty by court.