An MP from the former Opposition Platform-For Life (OPFL) has been served with a notice of suspicion of treason. The investigation established that he was working for Russia, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and the Prosecutor-General's Office said.
The suspect was served a notice of suspicion under Part 1 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (high treason). According to LB.ua's sources in law enforcement, the MP in question is Oleksandr Ponomaryov.
"It has been established that during the full-scale invasion of Russia, this MP, being in the temporarily occupied territory of Zaporizhzhya Region, voluntarily cooperated with the aggressor. In particular, he re-registered the enterprises under his control under Russian law, opened accounts in local 'branches' of Russian banking institutions, and organised the production of material assets and their transfer to the Russian occupying forces," the SBU said.
The MP's plants supplied Russians with fuel and lubricants for military hardware and provided equipment for the arrangement of fortifications.
When the MP moved to Kyiv, he continued to coordinate the enterprises that help Russia in the war against Ukraine. During urgent investigative actions, law-enforcement officers found and seized electronic media with evidence of the MP's activities in favour of Russia.
A pre-trial measure of restraint is being selected. The offender faces up to 15 years in prison.
Earlier, journalists of the Schemes investigative programme found out that Ponomaryov had Russian citizenship back in 2021. In March 2022, the Berdyansk city council said that Ponomaryov had been abducted by Russian troops. Later it turned out that he was in Crimea. Ponomaryov was called the "shadow master of Berdyansk" and a "local feudal lord", according to the Chesno movement.
In January 2023, a decision was taken to strip him and several other MPs from the former OPFL of their mandates ahead of schedule. However, this has not happened yet. The MP is a member of the Platform for Life and Peace, formed after the OPFL was banned as pro-Russian.