Anti-corruption authorities questioned the secretary of the National Security Council of Ukraine Rustem Umerov. This was announced at a briefing by the Director of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, Semen Kryvonos.
“Mr. Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council — the relevant investigative actions were carried out against him by NABU detectives. We have publicly communicated about Umerov’s interrogation as part of the pre-trial investigation, I cannot communicate further.
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov has the status of a witness in a separate NABU proceeding regarding the procurement of drones and weapons,” — stated Kryvonos.
Head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office Oleksandr Klymenko emphasized that the word “appears” in this case is incorrect.
“In general, it is incorrect to use “appears”. The actions of specific individuals are checked or not checked, whether they contain elements of a crime. Umerov’s actions were checked. He has been interrogated, and at the moment he has the status of a witness in criminal proceedings,” emphasized Oleksandr Klymenko, head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office.
Other details regarding the case have not been disclosed by the SAPO yet. Earlier, during a court hearing in a corruption case in the energy sector, the SAPO prosecutor stated that the suspected businessman Timur Mindich had influence over the then Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov.
Umerov confirmed that he met with Mindich during the period when he headed the Ministry of Defense, but denied the claims of influence over him.
The Public Anti-Corruption Council under the Ministry of Defense stated that Mindich tried to pressure Umerov to support the purchase of bulletproof vests from a specific company – “Milikon” YuA”.
