The Prosecutor Generalʼs Office (PGO) says that they are not involved in the distribution of private photos from the phone of the head of the Anti-Corruption Center Vitaliy Shabunin.
Babel was told about this by the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office.
On December 16, Shabunin said that the Prosecutor Generalʼs Office and the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) had leaked to Telegram channels intimate photos of him from a phone seized during a search. These searches took place in July. Shabunin is suspected of evading military service.
The Prosecutor Generalʼs Office responded that if it turns out that the investigation materials were used illegally, these actions will be assessed according to the law and given a legal assessment.
At the same time, the prosecutorʼs office emphasized that if the distribution of these photos is not part of the case, then it can only be investigated based on the victimʼs statement. According to PGO, Shabunin did not file any such appeals.
Meanwhile, the State Bureau of Investigation said it would check on employees who had access to Shabuninʼs phone. It called the leak allegations "false".
Shabuninʼs case
On July 11, Vitaliy Shabunin was reported on suspicion of evading military service and fraud.
A few hours before the announcement of the suspicion, law enforcement officers conducted searches at Shabuninʼs place of work in the Chuhuiv district of the Kharkiv region and at his home. In response to the suspicion and searches, the head of Anti-Corruption Center stated that President Volodymyr Zelensky was moving towards corrupt authoritarianism.
On July 15, the Pechersk District Court chose a preventive measure for Shabunin in the form of a personal bond.
On July 16, the State Bureau of Investigation searched the apartment of the deceased pilot Andriy "Juice" Pilshchykov. Shabunin had previously lived in this apartment.
On August 13, Shabuninʼs commander Viktor Yushko was charged in the case. The investigation believes that he helped Shabunin evade duty and abused his official position.
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