Former Foreign Ministry official detained with $224,000 bail

Ukraine's High Anti-Corruption Court has ordered former Foreign Ministry State Secretary Oleksandr Bankov to be held in custody for 60 days with a bail set at UAH 10 million, equivalent to approximately $224,000. The court's decision followed several hearings on July 29 and 31. Initially, a prosecutor from the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office had sought Bankov's detention with a bail amount of UAH 15 million, or around $336,000.

However, Bankov's legal team argued that the proposed bail sum was excessive and requested the court to consider a more lenient measure. The High Anti-Corruption Court partially complied with the prosecution's request, reducing the bail amount by UAH 5 million, or about $112,000.

Bankov is accused of embezzling international assistance intended for Ukraine during the early stages of Russia's full-scale invasion. Authorities allege that Bankov and his associates misappropriated donations meant to support Ukraine, including $1 million in international aid transferred to the Ukrainian Embassy in Japan and approximately UAH 8 million, or $179,000, in grants from the U.S. organization RDI.

According to investigators, a total of UAH 37.3 million, or about $836,000, may have been laundered through companies and sole proprietors controlled by the suspects.