Father of MP Honcharenko hiding from NABU in England and afraid to return

The father of the member of the Verkhovna Rada, Oleksii Honcharenko (European Solidarity), the former mayor of Odesa, Oleksii Kostusiev, hid from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) in Great Britain.

This is evidenced by court materials, Ukrainian News Agency reports.

According to the data of the State Border Guard Service, Kostusiev has not crossed the border of Ukraine for more than 6 years.

However, according to the information of the State Migration Service of Ukraine, in October 2018, he received a passport of a citizen of Ukraine for traveling abroad at the Embassy of Ukraine in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, which indicates his stay abroad.

Kostusiev's defense attorney noted that in his letters he informed about the actual location and place of residence of his client.

Moreover, the lawyer noted that Kostusiev has not lived in Ukraine for a long time since 2014, and the representatives of the prosecution know about his proper place of residence from the letters and appeals of the defense attorney, which were sent from September 1, 2023.

The lawyer insisted on taking into account the length of time his client had left Ukraine (10 years ago) and his willingness to participate in criminal proceedings and court hearings via video conference.

The defender, on the other hand, noted that Kostusiev's arrival in Ukraine is currently inadmissible in view of the state of war and hostilities on the territory of Ukraine, which poses a threat to his life, as well as his unsatisfactory state of health due to his advanced age and the difficult route from Great Britain to Ukraine.

According to the lawyers, the father of MP Honcharenko has a residence permit in England.

To confirm this, a photocopy of the suspect's passport was attached with a note that he was temporarily registered at the Embassy of Ukraine in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

As Ukrainian News Agency earlier reported, the father of MP Honcharenko was declared wanted.

The NABU served the suspicion of taking over Odesa International Airport and UAH 2.5 billion of income from its activities to 5 persons, including former Odesa Mayor Oleksii Kostusiev (father of MP Oleksii Honcharenko), his former deputy, head of one of the limited liability companies responsible and businessmen Borys Kaufman and Oleksandr Hranovskyi.

The investigation established that in 2011, the mayor of Odesa Kostusiev, his deputy, the head of the LLC and Kaufman with Hranovskyi, developed and implemented a scheme, as a result of which the property complex of a strategic object - the international airport was transferred from the property of the territorial community to the joint ownership of the city and the so-called private investors.