Case description
On March 25, 2025, the HACC found Member of Parliament Anatolii Hunko guilty of attempted incitement to provide a bribe and fraud.
Anatolii Hunko is an MP of the 9th convocation who was expelled from the Servant of the People faction after a corruption scandal. At the time of the crime, he was the chairman of the Temporary Investigation Commission of the Verkhovna Rada, tasked with investigating corruption in state-owned enterprises, institutions, and organizations of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences of Ukraine (NAAS).
According to the prosecution, in 2023, Hunko, together with his acquaintance Volodymyr Ivasyk and Ihor Kalinichenko (a lawyer and a voluntary assistant to an MP), deceived an entrepreneur. They offered him the use of 1,700 hectares of land from the state enterprise of the National Academy of Agrarian Sciences. For this, they demanded $130 per hectare, totaling $221,000. The company representative was required to transfer $85,000 of this amount in advance, before the start of land cultivation. Hunko allegedly had to share the bribe he received with himself, the president of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, employees of the National Police, and the chairman of the Rivne RMA to avoid obstructing the activities of the entrepreneur's company. Ivasyk arranged a meeting with the entrepreneur and, leveraging his connections, attempted to convince him of his own “ties” as well as Hunko’s alleged “connections” with the named individuals. Hunko explained that the director of the state-owned enterprise would be appointed by a person under his control, who would then sign contracts for land cultivation with the agricultural enterprise. The MP promised that the head of the Rivne RMA would not interfere with the company's activities, provided he received the appropriate land plots. In reality, Hunko had no intention of influencing anyone and essentially sought to deceive the entrepreneur and take possession of his money.
However, according to the defense, the prosecution's version is not supported by the evidence collected. The defense lawyers requested the acquittal of the MP, citing a lack of evidence of a criminal offense and alleging provocation by law enforcement agencies.
During the court debate, the prosecutor rejected the defense's arguments regarding provocation, referring to the evidence presented during the trial. In addition, employees of the NAAS confirmed that the appointment of the head of the state-owned enterprise followed the general procedure, without the influence of any officials, including Hunko. There is no evidence of abuse of influence in Hunko's actions, as the bribe was intended to be provided directly to him as an official, according to the accused's plan. Therefore, Hunko and his accomplices, in fact, deceived the entrepreneur, claiming that they had resolved this issue. Therefore, these actions were qualified as fraud.
Hunko himself did not deny the existence of the scheme but claimed it was a provocation and requested to be acquitted.
On March 25, 2025, a panel of HACC judges found him guilty of committing criminal offences under Articles 15(2), 28(2), 190(4), 27(4), 15(2), and 369(4) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
For the aggregate of all offenses, he was sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment with confiscation of all property belonging to him, as well as a three-year ban on being elected to public authorities and on holding public service positions.
Now, the HACC Appeals Chamber is reviewing appeals against this verdict. The appeals were filed by both the prosecutor and the defense counsel for the accused.
Interestingly, Hunko was already prosecuted in another case, which was later closed. In June 2020, he filed a claim for moral damages due to illegal harassment, citing mental suffering, loss of business reputation, and negative changes in his personal life that affected his public and political activities. In December of the same year, the Pecherskyi District Court ruled to award monetary compensation for non-pecuniary damage in the amount of UAH 2 million on Hunko's claim.
