Confusion over Kolomoisky's citizenship: Yermak's advisor says Cyprus and Israel, but judge calls him a Ukrainian

This was reported by Serhiy Leshchenko, a freelance adviser to the head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak.

"In the investigation materials, Kolomoisky appears as a citizen of Israel and Cyprus. This destroys the popular false narrative that Kolomoisky has not been deprived of Ukrainian citizenship and will not be extradited to the United States," Leshchenko writes.

The advisor emphasized that Kolomoisky was mentioned as a person who was deprived of Ukrainian citizenship. As for the requests for his extradition to the United States, Ukraine has not received any.

"If received, this request will be fulfilled in accordance with the Treaty between Ukraine and the United States of America on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters. There are no restrictions in the form of Kolomoisky's citizenship for this," Leshchenko added.

At the same time, the CensorNet portal published a video with the announcement of the court decision to impose a preventive measure on Kolomoisky, filmed in the evening of September 2, 2023, in the hall of the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv.

"Criminal proceedings on the application of a preventive measure in the form of detention against Kolomoisky Ihor Valeriyovych, born on February 13, 1963, born in the city of Dnipro, a citizen of Ukraine, who is suspected of committing a criminal offense," the judge read out the document.

According to Dzerkalo Tyzhnia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a secret decree in July 2022 to deprive a number of people of their citizenship, including oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky. This information was later confirmed by MP Serhiy Vlasenko, a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Legal Policy, who published a photo of the decree, as well as MP Yaroslav Yurchyshyn of the Voice faction, who referred to the response from the Presidential Office.

At the same time, the Office of the President and President Zelenskyy personally did not comment on this information.

What is known about the cases related to Kolomoisky

At the end of 2016, the government decided to nationalize PrivatBank, after which the financial institution was recapitalized for more than UAH 155 billion. Earlier, the U.S. Department of Justice accused Ihor Kolomoisky of embezzling billions of dollars from PrivatBank, which he allegedly laundered through companies in the United States and around the world. The oligarch denied the allegations and said that he had made all the investments from his own funds.

It is known that more than 240 proceedings on the nationalization of PrivatBank were considered in Ukrainian and foreign courts. In particular, a London court is considering a lawsuit filed by PrivatBank against the former owners of the financial institution, Kolomoisky and Boholyubov, and their affiliated companies. The bank is seeking compensation in connection with schemes that have all the signs of fraud and money laundering, which, according to the bank, were implemented by its former owners.

On March 5, 2021, the United States imposed sanctions on Ihor Kolomoisky and his family members.

In September 2022, the Ukrainian anti-corruption authorities notified eight persons involved in a criminal investigation of suspicion of misappropriation of funds of Ukrnafta, one of the shareholders of which is the Privat Group, which is affiliated with Ihor Kolomoisky, in the amount of over UAH 13 billion. The suspects include the former chairman of Ukrnafta's board; the former deputy head of the company's oil, gas and refined products sales department; the former head of the department for control over accounting and supply of oil products at Ukrnafta; and former directors of five commercial enterprises.

Later, on November 7, 2022, the state seized the property of five strategically important enterprises, including Ukrnafta. At the same time, in November 2022, businessmen Ihor Kolomoisky and Hennadiy Boholyubov, co-owner of the Privat group, were arrested in absentia in Russia for allegedly misappropriating 800,000 tons of Russian oil.

On the morning of Saturday, September 2, 2023, oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky was served with a notice of suspicion of legalization of property obtained by fraud.

On the same day, Kolomoisky arrived at the Shevchenkivskyi District Court of Kyiv, where he was chosen a preventive measure in the fraud case. The oligarch was sent to custody for 60 days with the possibility of bail in the amount of almost UAH 510 million.