On October 17, the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court (HCC) decided to lift the seizure from the former residence of fugitive President Viktor Yanukovych, known as “Mezhihirya”, as well as from the land plot on which the complex is located. About this informs Transparency International Ukraine.
It is noted that the request to cancel the arrest was submitted by a representative of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine. Yanukovych’s defenders opposed such a decision, pointing out the need to wait for the final verdict in the case. However, the court decided to grant the request and remove the seizure from the real estate.
According to the Agency for Search and Management of Assets (ARMA), the cancellation of the arrest applies only to immovable property. The status of the movable property, which is still under the management of ARMA, remains unchanged, according to the current management agreement.
Olena Duma, head of ARMA, clarified, that the state institution “Mezhihirya Park-monument of horticultural art” continues to manage this asset, ensuring stable revenues to the state budget.
History of “Mezhyhirya”
“Mezhihirya” is a residence with an area of about 140 hectares, located in the Kyiv region. Until 2007, it was state property. From 2007 to 2014, the complex was used by Viktor Yanukovych, who first lived there as the Prime Minister, and later as the President of Ukraine. In 2017, the prosecutor’s office estimated the assets of “Mezhyhirya” at 10 billion hryvnias.
Yanukovych and his son Oleksandr, through Tantalit LLC, organized a scheme to remove the residence from state ownership. After that, due to a series of manipulations, the residence came under the control of the company, which allowed Yanukovych to use the property for free.
After the Revolution of Dignity in 2014, “Mezhyhirya” came under the care of Maidan activists, who guarded the estate and conducted tours. In 2019, ARMA began the search for a manager for the complex and chose the Scompany company, but this choice raised questions due to the connection of its owner with the politician Yevgeny Murayev, who is now suspected of high treason.
