Former Ukrainian presidential chief of staff Andriy Yermak has appeared in court as prosecutors seek to place him in custody over allegations linked to a multimillion-dollar money laundering investigation.
Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau, NABU, and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, SAPO, have named Yermak as a suspect in a case involving the alleged laundering of more than 460 million hryvnias, about $10.5 million, through a luxury residential development in Kozyn, outside Kyiv. Investigators say the scheme operated between 2021 and 2025 and was connected to the “Dynasty” housing project.
Prosecutors have asked the High Anti-Corruption Court to remand Yermak in custody, with bail set at 180 million hryvnias, about $4 million. The hearing began on Tuesday and is expected to resume on Wednesday.
Yermak, 54, denied wrongdoing. “The notice of suspicion is unfounded,” he wrote on Telegram after the proceedings, adding that he would defend his rights, name and reputation. During a break in court, he told reporters: “I own only one apartment and one car.”
The case is part of a wider anti-corruption operation known as “Midas,” which has focused on alleged corruption around Energoatom, Ukraine’s state nuclear energy company. The investigation first became public last November, when businessman Timur Mindich, a former associate of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, was accused of orchestrating a $100 million kickback scheme in the energy sector. Mindich denies the allegations and has fled to Israel.
NABU said the latest suspicions involve an organised group accused of using a high-end construction project to legalise illicit funds. The agency stressed that suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
The case marks one of the most politically sensitive corruption investigations in wartime Ukraine. Yermak was long regarded as one of Zelenskyy’s closest and most powerful aides before resigning in November after anti-corruption officers searched his home in connection with the broader Midas inquiry.
The proceedings come as Ukraine faces continued pressure from Western partners to strengthen anti-corruption institutions while fighting Russia’s invasion. For Zelenskyy, the case brings renewed scrutiny of his inner circle at a time when public trust, foreign aid and wartime governance remain under intense examination.
