NABU Detective's Decision to Close Shabunin's Fictitious Assignment Case Overturned Again

The High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) investigating judge has once again annulled a decision by a National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) detective to close a criminal case concerning the fictitious secondment of mobilized activist Vitaliy Shabunin from the 207th Territorial Defense Battalion to the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP). It is likely that the next step will be the announcement of suspicion against him.

A copy of the HACC investigating judge's ruling was published by blogger and Russian-Ukrainian war veteran Volodymyr Boyko.

"The HACC investigating judge annulled the NABU detective's decision to close the criminal proceedings regarding the abuse of power by NACP Director Novikov and Deputy Director Sytnyk, who organized fictitious secondments to this institution for their friends among the soldiers of the 207th separate Territorial Defense Battalion. Instead of questioning Novikov and Sytnyk and gaining temporary access to the documents of the military unit where draft dodgers Shabunin and Sherembey were fictitiously listed for service, the detective closed the case based on the fact that 'on 04.03.2025, Shabunin V.V. was interrogated as a witness, and his testimony indicates that he is not acquainted with Sherembey D.O. and knows nothing about the circumstances of his military service or secondment to the NACP'," Boyko wrote.

According to the investigating judge's ruling, the decision to close criminal proceeding No. 52025000000000070 from February 12, 2025, was issued without proper clarification of all circumstances relevant to making an appropriate procedural decision. This means that the decision from May 1, 2025, does not meet the criteria for a reasoned procedural decision, is premature, and is subject to cancellation, the ruling emphasizes.

In January of this year, it became known that the HACC investigating judge had already canceled a decision by NABU detective Biryukov to close criminal proceeding No. 52024000000000420 from August 12, 2024, regarding Vitaliy Shabunin. This was reported by well-known lawyer Rostyslav Kravets. According to him, the investigating judge's ruling indicated that in Shabunin's case, NABU detective Biryukov had conducted the pre-trial investigation negligently. Specifically, he failed to investigate all signs of criminal offenses.

Earlier, Volodymyr Boyko published details of Shabunin's case. He stated that during an inspection by the Territorial Defense Forces Command, it was discovered that in 2022-2023, serviceman Shabunin, who was mobilized to the 207th separate Territorial Defense Battalion (military unit A7376), did not appear at his military unit. This was because he was considered "seconded to the NACP" based on letters from Novikov and Sytnyk. Boyko noted that Shabunin not only received monetary support but also an additional reward of 30,000 UAH per month for performing combat missions.

Boyko also published materials about Shabunin's alleged appropriation of a Nissan Pathfinder car, which was imported into Ukraine without customs duties for the needs of military unit A7376. To this day, Shabunin has not returned this car to military unit A7376 and uses it as his own property, the veteran reported.

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