The High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has set bail at 3 million UAH for Supreme Court Judge Zhanna Yelenina, who is under investigation for allegedly accepting a bribe of $50,000. This decision follows a hearing where evidence was presented regarding the charges against her.
Yelenina is accused of receiving the bribe from former Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Knyazev, with the funds reportedly seized during a police search. During the proceedings, Yelenina’s defense argued that Knyazev’s testimony against her was motivated by his desire to negotiate a plea deal to reduce his own sentence.
In addition to the bail requirement, the court has imposed several restrictions on Yelenina. She is prohibited from leaving Kyiv and Zhytomyr regions, must refrain from contacting witnesses—including Knyazev, businessman Kostyantyn Zhevaho, and others—and is required to surrender her passports to prevent international travel.
This case is part of a broader investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAP) into systemic corruption within the Supreme Court. Recently, the scope of this investigation has expanded to include three active Supreme Court judges and one retired judge.
According to investigators, these individuals allegedly received illicit benefits in exchange for judicial decisions favoring Zhevaho, the owner of the Finance and Credit Group, in a case involving the Poltava Mining and Processing Plant. Zhevaho has publicly denied any involvement in the corruption allegations linked to the Supreme Court.
The High Anti-Corruption Court in Ukraine has set bail for Judge Zhanna Yelenina amid corruption allegations involving a bribe from a former Supreme Court chief. This case reflects ongoing investigations into systemic corruption within the judiciary.