Clerk of Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi District Court makes a deal with prosecutor

The High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has announced its readiness to approve the plea agreement concluded between the prosecutor and Iryna Chervynska, a former court clerk of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi City District Court of Odesa Region.

According to the case file, the court scheduled a preparatory hearing for May 8.

The judges set the date of the preparatory hearing after reviewing the indictment and its annexes, as well as the plea agreement concluded on April 30.

Iryna Chervynska was accused of participating in a scheme whereby judges made decisions on the alleged independent upbringing of a child by a father under far-fetched circumstances. These decisions allowed men to avoid mobilization and leave the country under the pretext of caring for their children. For 3,500 dollars, without the participation of the parties, a decision was made in one court session that gave the right to travel abroad. In total, the investigation identified 1,40 such decisions.

The court clerk was accused of taking bribes. Under Article 369, paragraph 3, she faced imprisonment for a term of four to eight years with or without confiscation of property, but given the plea deal, the punishment would be lighter.

The investigation believes that the former head of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi City District Court of Odesa Oblast, Valentyn Zaveriukha, and a judge of the same court, Serhii Savytskyi, were also involved in the scheme.

In December 2024, the High Council of Justice considered a petition filed by Valentyn Zaveriukha, a judge of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi City District Court of Odesa Oblast. He asked to suspend the disciplinary case against him, citing his mobilization to the Armed Forces.

In January 2024, the SBU, together with the NABU, detained a judge of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi Court of Odesa Oblast. According to the investigation, the judge took bribes of $3,500 to make decisions that allowed men of conscription age to avoid mobilization and go abroad.

The scheme has been in place since April 2022. During this time, more than a thousand such decisions were issued. The court fictitiously assigned the place of residence of children to the men, which allowed them to receive a deferral from mobilization. The scheme involved court employees, a lawyer, and intermediaries. The lawyer searched for clients and passed on bribes.

Кирило Бойко