Head of ILI Tetiana Khutor shared new details in the “Midas” case on Hromadske Radio
Court proceedings in the case of Herman Halushchenko may last from five to ten years due to the suspect’s substantial financial resources and ability to hire highly qualified lawyers. This was stated by the Head of the Institute of Legislative Ideas, Tetiana Khutor, on Hromadske Radio.
“Halushchenko has many assets and the capacity to secure lawyers who will try to stretch the case out for 10 years,” the expert said.
According to her, the public is currently aware of only part of the evidence that investigators consider appropriate to disclose – primarily the materials presented by NABU.
“There is a great deal of information that we do not even see. In particular, this concerns financial assets located abroad. Details about them are not being disclosed at this stage due to international cooperation aimed at identifying and freezing them,” Tetiana Khutor suggested.
She also drew attention to the possible use of cryptocurrency by the suspects in the “Midas” case to transfer funds – specifically, storing assets in so-called “cold wallets,” which complicates tracking and blocking them anywhere in the world.
“I doubt that all diverted assets are publicly known, or that even NABU and SAPO are aware of their full whereabouts. I do not rule out that some of these assets are held in cryptocurrency, which is almost impossible to reach – especially if they are on exchanges that do not identify their clients,” the Head of ILI noted.
In her view, the priority for law enforcement should be the maximum identification and freezing of assets – real estate, accounts, and deposits – both in Ukraine and abroad in cooperation with foreign jurisdictions. This concerns not only the criminal liability of those involved but also the possibility of returning funds to the state budget. The expert also emphasized the need for legislative changes to prevent new corruption risks.
“To minimize similar corruption schemes in the future, it is necessary to adopt appropriate legislation that allows for the recovery of such assets prior to a court verdict,” Tetiana Khutor urged.
The full recording of the broadcast is available here: