The co-owner of the Zelensky estate was charged with illegal demolition

The co-owner of the Zelensky estate, who gave instructions for its demolition, was declared of the suspicion.

This was reported by the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office.

The co-ownerʼs actions were classified as intentional destruction of property, which was seized by the court (Part 1 of Article 388 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

The maximum penalty is imprisonment for 2 years.

The prosecutorʼs office recalled that the estate was demolished despite the fact that the court imposed an arrest on it with a ban on use, disposal and alienation.

According to the investigation, the suspect involved a construction company, whose employees he instructed to dismantle the building. Currently, the equipment used by the builders has been seized.

Suspicions are also being made against others involved in the demolition of the building.

What preceded

The Zelensky estate at the address of the Konyskyho Street, 22 was demolished in the evening of July 19. Only two days before, the non-governmental organization "Heritage Kyiv" submitted a package of documentation to the department regarding the assignment of the building to the status of a monument.

Kyiv police opened criminal proceedings under part 2 of Art. 298 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — destruction of objects of cultural heritage.

CO "Heritage Kyiv"stated that the estate was demolished by "Turgenev Build" LLC, and the activists who tried to prevent them were attacked by unknown men. According to the activists, they want to build the residential complex "Turgenev" on the site of the historical monument.

On July 20, the Ministry of Culture declared that it had not issued any permits for the demolition of the Zelensky estate in Kyiv.

The department emphasized that although the building did not have the legal status of a monument, it was located in the historical area of the city and was recognized as a significant historical building. This status was supposed to protect the house from wear and tear.

Because of the demolition of the building, on July 20, about a thousand Kyiv citizens came to a rally in front of the Kyiv City State Administration (KCSA).

On July 21, the prosecutorʼs office in Kyiv opened a criminal case due to the demolition of the Zelensky estate. The department said that construction had been going on at the site of the building for a long time without any permission from the Ministry of Culture. So in January 2024, she was arrested to stop construction and not touch the building.

What is known about the Zelensky estate

The Zelensky estate (also known as the Malinin manor) was built in 1890. At first it was made of wood, and later it was covered with bricks.

The building was commissioned by the merchant Vasyl Malinin, and he owned the estate for at least 20 years. It became famous due to the fact that in the period from 1911 to 1915, a family of wealthy citizens Zelensky lived here.

Since 2018, the building has been gradually dismantled, writes Liga.net. Activists believe that the dismantling of the building is connected with the residential complex "Turgenev", which was built just behind the estate. In their opinion, the developer wants to build a second row of housing estates on the site of the estate.

In 2022, the developer Victor Besaha confirmed to Liga.net the information about the second phase of the residential complex, but then these plans were suspended because the Ministry of Culture was checking the historical value of the building. Besaha stated that the manor is not a historical monument, because "in 2007 this house was demolished and built from scratch."

Activist Dmytro Perov wrote a few days before the demolition that in April 2024 “Turgenev Build” LLC ordered a "scientific" study, according to which the building cannot acquire the status of a monument, because at one time it was built by order of the professor of Russian philology Malinin.