On June 16, 2026, a prosecutor from the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), based on the findings of a pretrial investigation by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU), filed an indictment with the court against Kostyantyn Zhevago, the owner of the “Finance and Credit” group. He is accused of providing unlawful benefits to former Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniaziev and Supreme Court justices.
The SAPO has said this in a statement, the Ukrainian News agency reports.
The SAPO and NABU established that Zhevago had been in contact with a lawyer from a law firm who was supposed to directly transfer funds to another individual involved in criminal activity, who, in turn, was to provide them as an illegal benefit to the leadership of the Supreme Court in exchange for a court ruling in the businessman’s favor.
According to the investigation, in 2002, Zhevago acquired 40.19% of the shares in a mining and processing complex from four companies. Eighteen years later, the former shareholders filed a lawsuit with the commercial court seeking to have the securities purchase agreement declared invalid and to reclaim their shares in the complex. However, the court denied their claims.
In 2022, the appellate court overturned the lower court’s decision and declared the securities purchase agreement invalid.
To prevent the loss of his shares, in early March 2023, Zhevago conspired with a back-office lawyer at the Supreme Court. Between March and April 2023, with the assistance of another lawyer and a number of unidentified individuals, the businessman transferred USD 2.7 million to the attornlawyer ey.
On April 19, 2023, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the businessman. Subsequently, on May 3 and 15, 2023, the businessman, with the assistance of third parties, provided an unlawful benefit to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. On May 15, 2023, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court and the lawyer were caught red-handed and detained while receiving the second installment of USD 450,000. In August 2023, the businessman was notified of the charges against him, and in September 2025, the accomplice was notified.
Currently, the indictment against the businessman has been sent to the High Anti-Corruption Court for consideration on the merits.
As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, the High Anti-Corruption Court ordered businessman Zhevago to be held in custody as a preventive measure. The High Anti-Corruption Court sentenced former Supreme Court Chief Justice Kniaziev to five years in prison for bribery. He implicated other judges. Kniaziev was accused of receiving nearly USD 3 million in bribes from people in Zhevago’s inner circle.
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