The Supreme Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has imposed a precautionary measure against Yulia Tymoshenko, the leader of the Batkivshina faction, for a large sum of bail and not to leave the country. At a court hearing on Friday, January 16, a financial restriction of 33.3 million hryvnias (approximately 661,000 euros) was imposed on the prominent politician. In addition, he was obliged to submit passports for travel abroad and not communicate with more than 60 members of parliament.
Bribe offer and "Mazur" nickname
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NANB) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SPA) of Ukraine accuse Tymoshenko of attempting to systematically bribe members of the "Servant of the People" faction.
- The main witness: Deputy Igor Kopitin, known in the investigation materials under the pseudonym "Mazur," in December 2025 appealed to law enforcement agencies and reported a plan to bribe his colleagues.
- Proposed funds: According to audio recordings, Tymoshenko promised Kopitin and his team a monthly payment of $5,000 in exchange for "correct" voting on certain bills or personnel.
- Search results: During inspections conducted at the party office, bags containing cash and lists of various deputies' voting processes were found.
Tymoshenko's rebuttal: "This is completely falsified!"
Yulia Tymoshenko delivered her usual passionate speech in the courtroom, vehemently denying the accusations. He called the audio recordings provided by UMAB "fake" and emphasized that such conversations have never occurred.
- Cooperation, but not money: The politician confirmed that he met with Igor Kopitin, but said that these conversations were only within the framework of political cooperation in parliament.
- Political persecution: In his speech, Tymoshenko compared the current situation with previous criminal cases and described himself as a victim of the "fascist regime." He believes these actions were orchestrated to prevent him from defending Ukraine's independence.
Judicial process and advocates' position
The politician's long-time lawyer, Dmitry Titarenko, called on investigators to provide a full recording of the conversation and Igor Kopitin to testify openly in court. The lawyer also expressed concern that the overturned verdict in the 2011 "gas case" was attached to this case.
Judge Vitaliy Dubas found a 33.3 million bail sufficient instead of the 50 million hryvnias requested by the prosecutor's office. Currently, Tymoshenko cannot leave the Kyiv region without the investigator's permission. At the end of his speech, he emphasized: "I do not want to flee the country, because if it were not for me, who would save Ukraine?"
Do you think this corruption scandal will put a final end to Yulia Tymoshenko's political career, or will she be able to get out of the situation again?
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