Former MP wanted by the NABU has been found in Monaco: he is implicated in a case involving 160 million hryvnias
This is reported by Ukrainska Pravda in its investigation ‘Monaco 4 Battalion’.
A Ukrainska Pravda film crew spotted Yuriy Ivanyushchenko on the premises of the Monte-Carlo Bay hotel complex in Monaco. According to the journalists, he was meeting with his business partner Ivan Avramov in the complex’s inner courtyard.
Ukrainska Pravda notes that Ivanyushchenko had already been spotted in Monaco in 2023. The report describes him as one of Viktor Yanukovych’s close associates, who has managed to evade Ukrainian justice for over ten years and continue to live in Monaco.
Why is NABU searching for him?
Ivanyushchenko is implicated in a case concerning the misappropriation and subsequent legalisation of 18 hectares of state-owned land on which the ‘Stolychny’ market near Kyiv is situated. According to NABU and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), the market value of this land exceeds 160 million hryvnias.
According to the investigation, in 2021 a dispute arose between a former MP from the ‘Party of Regions’ and a Kyiv-based property developer over control of the wholesale market near Kyiv. Following this, NABU alleges, officials at the State Geocadastre made changes to the cadastre, which allowed them to dispose of a land plot covering more than 150 hectares.
What the investigation alleges
The Bureau also stated that, following this, the parties to the dispute signed a memorandum on the joint use of the land plot, in particular for development. In September 2021, according to the investigation, a trusted associate of the former MP became one of the beneficiaries of the companies owning these plots of land.
The NABU reported that further disposal of the land was halted following an arrest warrant issued at the request of prosecutors from the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO). In addition to Ivanyushchenko, the case also involves a Kyiv-based property developer, individuals associated with her, and the former head of the regional office of the State Geocadastre.
What the High Anti-Corruption Court decided
In October 2025, the High Anti-Corruption Court, in absentia, imposed a preventive measure in the form of detention on Yuriy Ivanyushchenko in the case concerning the land of the ‘Stolychny’ market. The prosecutor noted in court that Ivanyushchenko had long since left Ukraine, his place of residence had not been established, and he himself was wanted by the authorities.
The defence argued that Ivanyushchenko was not in Russia but in France, and that he periodically underwent medical examinations and treatment in Monaco. The defence also claimed that he held a Bulgarian passport.
What happened with the sanctions
In March 2026, NABU appealed to the President and the SBU to impose sanctions on Ivanyushchenko. He was one of the suspects in the case concerning the land on which the ‘Stolychny’ market is situated.
However, the SBU did not consider NABU’s request to contain sufficient evidence of a threat to national security. At the same time, the agency stated that it was prepared to reconsider proposals for sanctions if they were further refined.
The proceedings in the case concerning the land on which the ‘Stolychny’ market is situated are currently at the pre-trial investigation stage. In accordance with the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until their guilt has been proven in accordance with the law and established by a court conviction.
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