Law enforcers open criminal proceedings over reported persecution of Slidstvo.info investigative journalist
Law enforcement officers are investigating obstruction of journalistic activity after representatives of the military registration and enlistment office tried to serve a draft summons to Slidstvo.info journalist Yevhen Shulhat on the instructions of a special service officer, reported the Office of the Prosecutor General.
In addition to obstructing journalistic activity, law enforcement officers will investigate possible abuse of power by employees of the Security Service of Ukraine and the territorial recruitment center.
The incident was preliminarily registered in the Unified Register of Pre-trial Investigations under Part 1 of Article 364, Part 3 of Article 171 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The perpetrators face up to five years in prison.
Background
Investigative journalist Yevhen Shulhat of Slidstvo.info eastablished that the wife of the head of the SBU's cybersecurity department, Illya Vitiuk, bought an apartment in a premium residential complex in December 2023. The official's declaration states that the apartment cost UAH 12.8 million ($328,149). At the same time, the market price of such housing is more than UAH 20 million ($512,733), Shulhat claims.
Slidstvo.info says that Vitiuk's official income would not have been enough to buy this apartment. At the same time, his wife Yulia started doing business shortly after her husband was appointed to this position. The SBU assured her that her earnings were enough to buy the property.
The investigative journalism agency then claimed that representatives of the military registration and enlistment office tried to serve their journalist Shulhat with a draft summons on the instructions of an SBU officer. In this way, the special services supposedly wanted to punish the investigative journalist for his piece about the property of Vitiuk's wife.
The SBU press service told hromadske that the Ukrainian special service, together with the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the Armed Forces, is investigating the information from Slidstvo.Info about this incident. The inspection of this incident was also appointed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Oleksandr Syrskyi.