“Tatarov Establishes a Network of Judges, Law Enforcement Officers, and Lawyers to Influence Legal Cases Against Authorities – Hromadske. VIDEO 3 09423”
This is stated in the Hromadske investigation, War Ukraine-Russia News Hub reports.
Journalists found information about 59 people who defended dissertations under Tatarov’s leadership or in whose defense he was a scientific opponent, in the period from 2014 to 2020 – then Tatarov did not work for the authorities.
Among them are the following persons:
- lawyer Stanislav Sviridenko, who represented in court the interests of the wife of one of the attackers of activist Sergei Sternenko, Irina Kuznetsova;
- Judge of the Pechersky District Court Svetlana Shaputko, who actually supported sending activist Roman Ratushny under house arrest;
- Judge of the Pechersk District Court Svetlana Smyk, who at first delayed the consideration of the case about President Zelensky’s untimely declaration of receiving UAH 2.5 million for the sale of bonds, and later closed it. She was also known in connection with the case of the rector of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra Pavel Lebed: the automatic distribution of judges in this case had signs of corruption;
- Judge of the Pechersky District Court Vita Bortnitskaya, who, before retiring, decided to seize the property of Petro Poroshenko.
The full list of officials who defended themselves under the leadership or opposition of Tatarov can be found here.
At the same time, for example, in the cases of Sergei Sternenko and his supporters who staged a protest on Bankovaya, judge Svetlana Shaputko, prosecutor Oleg Belous and lawyer Stanislav Sviridenko are associated with Tatarov.
Could Tatarov’s connection with judges and law enforcement officers be accidental?
Hromadske suggests that there is a systemic connection between Tatarov and the defendant scientists.
“It is obvious that it is impossible to find evidence that Tatarov placed these people there. He, as the deputy head of the OP, has no personnel powers at all. But there is a de jure situation, and there is a de facto one. It is no secret that Tatarov is completely supervises the law enforcement block. I cannot believe that the Office of the President did not take any part in the formation of the leadership of these bodies. Having your own lawyers, having connections in the investigation, the prosecutor’s office, and the courts, you can close any cases on a turnkey basis,” – investigators quote Anti-Corruption Center lawyer Vadim Valko.
“There is reason to suspect that this informal network of Tatarov will serve the authorities to resolve more than one sensitive case,” the investigation says.
Who is Oleg Tatarov?
Let us remind you that Oleg Tatarov was appointed to the position of deputy head of the Office of the President on August 5, 2020. Previously, during the Revolution of Dignity, he worked as deputy head of the Main Investigation Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs under the leadership of Vitaly Zakharchenko. Tatarov oversaw criminal proceedings against activists of the Revolution of Dignity.