National Association of Lawyers of Ukraine filed statement to the Office of the General Prosecutor and the State Bureau of Investigation in connection with the actions of NABU detectives, who, according to the Association, conducted an illegal search and installed wiretapping equipment in the office of lawyers in Kyiv.
“Detectives not only eavesdropped, broke into the lawyers’ office in the center of the capital, but also conducted illegal searches there ‘before the decision of the investigating judge without proper grounds, which grossly violated the rights and legitimate interests of the lawyers.'” – the document says.
The appeal emphasizes that the search was conducted without an appropriate court order and without a prosecutor’s order. At the same time, NABU detectives knew that it was about the lawyers’ office, since the address was officially registered in the Unified Register of Lawyers of Ukraine.
In addition, at the same time as the office premises, the lawyers’ residences, where their wives and minor children were at that time, were also searched. The lawyers themselves were locked in the office during the investigation. As a result, no items or documents were seized. According to the Association, the decision to conduct the search was made by NABU detective Fedir Oliynyk, and already after the actual search, the judge of the High Anti-Corruption Court granted the request to conduct it.
According to the Association, NABU’s actions had “criminal intent” in order to gain access to confidential information that clients trusted to their defense attorneys, as well as to obtain information about the defense’s next steps.
Listening devices, according to the lawyers, were found on the floor of individual offices, including in the negotiation room where meetings with clients were held. It is also noted that the group of detectives involved in the incident included employees investigating the cases of clients of these lawyers.
The Association calls on the Prosecutor General’s Office to intervene in the situation and initiate criminal proceedings against NABU officials under Articles 162, 365 and 397 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — illegal entry into the possession of a person, exceeding official powers and obstructing the lawful activity of a defense attorney.
