Klitschkoʼs ex-advisor under suspicion — he paid a salary to a mobilized subordinate and helped him evade service

Klitschkoʼs former advisor was declared suspicious — investigators say he paid a salary to a subordinate who was mobilized into the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

This was reported by the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office.

This is the secretary of the Kyiv City Council and former advisor and deputy mayor of Kyiv Vitaliy Klitschko. His name is not specified, but during the indicated period these positions were held by Volodymyr Bondarenko.

Investigators found that in 2022-2023, he unjustifiably paid an employee of the Kyiv City Council a salary of UAH 700 thousand. At that time, this employee had joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine and was receiving the appropriate financial support as a military serviceman.

Bondarenko also sent a letter to the Kyiv City Military-Civil Administration with a request to send a mobilized employee to work in the Kyiv City Council.

Thus, the mobilized employee actually evaded service, did not arrive at the military unit, and did not perform any tasks related to the defense of Ukraine.

Bondarenko was charged with official negligence (Part 2 of Article 367) and aiding and abetting evasion of military service (Part 5 of Article 27, Part 4 of Article 409 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).

Bondarenko himself called the suspicion unfounded. He confirmed that he paid the salary of the deputy from the "European Solidarity" Ihor Khatsevych and signed a letter to the Kyiv City Military Administration (KCMA) regarding the possibility of him performing the duties of the case manager.

"I wonder how the investigation is then considering the signature of the head of the KCMA on this document, which allowed Ihor to perform such duties? Will they now be held criminally liable for the letters? The performance of direct functional duties regarding signing documents for the payment of wages is, in the opinion of the investigation, an illegal payment. Although the investigation knows for sure that Khatsevych returned the funds received from the Kyiv City Council to the budget and did not receive funds at the place of service," Bondarenko writes.

• Volodymyr Bondarenko was the secretary of the Kyiv City Council from 2020 to 2025. He resigned in April — he wrote the statement shortly after becoming a witness in a case of corruption in the land and budget sectors of the capital.

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