Ukraine arrests top bank official on suspicion of aiding Russian military
The suspect headed the Information Systems Department in one of the country’s biggest banks, the nation’s security service has said
A senior Ukrainian bank official has been arrested on charges of aiding Russia, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said in a statement on Telegram on Saturday. The man allegedly made regular financial donations to the Russian military through a crypto exchange, the statement claims.
The identity of the suspect has not been revealed, but the SBU said he headed the “Information Systems Department in one of Ukraine’s biggest banks.” According to investigators, the man used his own funds to support the Russian military. After the start of Russia’s military operation against Kiev in February 2022, the banker allegedly created an account on one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, which he used to regularly transfer money to the Russian military.
The man allegedly discovered information about the relevant crypto wallets in a Telegram channel, the statement said. According to the SBU, the exact amount of money the banker spent on supporting the Russian military is not clear.
The suspect was detained in Kiev as law enforcement officials raided his home. During the search, the investigators found a Russian passport and Russian rubles, according to the statement. Photos published by the SBU do not show any rubles; instead, a large amount of dollar and euro banknotes is visible along with a document suggesting that the banker received an award during Soviet times.
The man is accused of “assistance to an aggressor state” – a charge that carries a penalty of up to 12 years behind bars and confiscation of property under the Ukrainian Criminal Code. The suspect was placed in custody without the right to bail, the SBU said.
Ukraine has cracked down on people displaying sympathy towards Russia. In early 2024, a human rights NGO based in Kharkov reported more than 700 criminal cases in which people were convicted for supposedly aiding and abetting Russia in various ways. According to the report, in many cases, people were convicted for liking or sharing pro-Russian posts on social media.
In one case, an elderly Ukrainian woman was sentenced to five years for sharing three posts about Russian actions on the website Odnoklassniki in September 2023. The woman was charged with justifying, denying, and glorifying Russian “aggression” against Ukraine.
