Ukraine Court Orders Custody for Ex-Zelensky Chief of Staff Amid Expanding Corruption Probe

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Kyiv: A Ukrainian anti-corruption court has ordered the detention of Andriy Yermak, the former chief of staff to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in connection with a widening corruption investigation. Yermak, once one of the most powerful figures in Ukraine’s presidential administration, is accused of involvement in a money-laundering scheme linked to a luxury property development near Kyiv. Prosecutors allege that around $10.5 million was funneled through the project as part of a broader corruption network.

The court ruled that Yermak should be held in custody pending trial, though he has denied all wrongdoing. His legal team has said the allegations are unfounded and that they will appeal the decision. Bail was reportedly set at a high level, which he claims he is unable to pay.

The case is part of a larger anti-corruption crackdown involving several senior Ukrainian officials and former ministers, as investigators examine alleged kickbacks and illicit financial flows within the country’s energy and construction sectors.

Yermak resigned from his post in late 2025 following earlier raids and investigations, but his arrest marks a significant escalation in a scandal that has reached the highest levels of Ukraine’s political establishment during wartime.

While President Zelenskyy is not implicated in the investigation, the case has added political pressure on his administration at a sensitive moment in the ongoing war with Russia and Ukraine’s efforts to maintain international support.

Pic Credit: AFP