Tymoshenko in court says she does not know MPs named in bribery case
The decision was made by investigating judge Oleksii Kravchuk, Ukrinform reports, citing a livestream of the hearing.
At the start of the session, the defense lawyer argued that Tymoshenko had been notified of suspicion in a case that had not been registered in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations.
"The procedural decision – the notice of suspicion – was served outside the scope of the criminal offense being imputed," he said.
According to the lawyer, under the law each criminal offense must be entered separately into the register.
In the defense team's view, although two criminal proceedings against the Batkivshchyna leader were registered on November 26, 2025, the investigation should also have registered a new entry on January 12, 2026, when MP Ihor Kopytin recorded a conversation with Tymoshenko, and later merged the cases. Since this was not done, the defense argues that the January 14 notice of suspicion was issued within proceedings not registered in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations.
During the hearing, Tymoshenko stated she had no involvement in any crime. She also said she does not know the four MPs whom, according to investigators, she allegedly tried to bribe.
"I state that I do not know these people. Therefore, I ask that they be questioned in court, and I am convinced they will confirm this as well," she said.
Tymoshenko also said the defense team sought a forensic examination of an audio recording allegedly capturing her conversation with MP Ihor Kopytin, in which, according to investigators, she offered him money in exchange for specific votes in parliament. However, Ukrainian expert institutions refused to conduct the examination. As a result, the defense commissioned two expert analyses in the United Kingdom and Poland, which, she claims, found signs of editing in the recording.
She further stated that the alleged conversation with Kopytin never took place.
On January 14, 2026, the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine served Tymoshenko with a notice of suspicion over allegedly offering undue benefits to MPs.
The High Anti-Corruption Court imposed a preventive measure in the form of bail set at UAH 33 million, which has been fully paid.
On January 12, the court ordered the seizure of part of Tymoshenko's assets, though not all. In particular, it refused to freeze funds in one of her accounts as requested by the prosecution.
The court also ordered the seizure of certain assets belonging to her husband, Oleksandr Tymoshenko, including a Toyota Land Cruiser 200, an Audi A8, and two garages in Dnipro.
On February 16, the Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court partially overturned the first-instance ruling on the seizure of her assets.
On March 13, the investigating judge extended until May 13 the duration of the obligations imposed on Tymoshenko.
Photos: Pavlo Bahmut / Ukrinform
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