THE TRACTOR DRIVER OF THE STATE
12/27/2001 | Майдан-ІНФОРМ
THE TRACTOR DRIVER OF THE STATE -- THE CASE OF PAVLO
LAZARENKO (Part 4). The case of Pavlo Ivanovych Lazarenko, once one of the most powerful men in Ukraine and now an inmate at a federal detention facility in California, is a classic study of high-level corruption in Ukraine. It involves not only Lazarenko but a long list of players beginning with the Ukrainian president (who appointed Lazarenko prime minister), to the head of the Intelligence
Service that vetted the appointment, to the Prosecutor's Office that watched as an impoverished nation was bled dry. It is also the story of a lax law-enforcement system and parliament which refused to investigate his dealings, preferring to let the dirty work be done by the United States and Switzerland and only afterwards becoming a
minor participant.
The extent of Lazarenko's activities may never be known. The
major frauds which have been documented in the West include his dealings with the Naukova State Farm, United Energy Systems of Ukraine, and the GHP Corporation scam. There is also evidence of his relationship with President Leonid Kuchma in the creation of a mobile-phone company in Ukraine, where Lazarenko's money was used as the start-up capital of this firm.
Preceding episodes of this article have shown Lazarenko to be using his official position as prime minister to enrich himself and close friends; yet he was never questioned by Ukrainian law-enforcement agencies about his activities. By 1997, Western pressure to end his corrupt term in office had become more persistent, and Ukrainian President Kuchma was forced to act.
"PAVLO FROM PANAMA"
Western pressure was growing on Kuchma to put Lazarenko behind bars. In December 1997, Kuchma fired Hryhoriy Vorsinov and appointed Oleh Lytvak as Ukraine's acting prosecutor-general. On 23 December 1997, Lytvak formally charged Lazarenko with criminal activities.
But Lazarenko was a people's deputy and therefore immune from prosecution. Not that this prevented non-members of parliament from illegal activities; but it was a convenient shield for many.
Angry at Kuchma for having relieved him of his prime minister's post, Lazarenko went on the offensive. First he created his own political party, Hromada, which he stated was in direct opposition to Kuchma. Then he proclaimed that he would run for president in the next elections. Kuchma was beginning to take notice of Lazarenko's new face. Then the offensive grew. Lazarenko wrote in October 1998:
"I want to state, and place on the record, that the 'case of
the Swiss bank accounts' and 'Lazarenko's dacha [vacation home],' and all the other, I am convinced, affairs which will be concocted by the masters of political intrigues in the Cabinet of Ministers and by the prosecutor-general are an open attempt to discredit the opposition, nothing but a commissioned political affair. Knowing our Prosecutor-
General's Office, I would not be surprised if I am to be accused of murdering the Russian Emperor, Nikolai II, or taking part in the murder of Trotsky." ("Holos Ukrainy" 28 October 1998)
Pavlo ("Pasha," as he was called by his cronies from
Dnipropetrovsk) knew his topic. He had himself witnessed many such perversions of justice by the Prosecutor-General's Office. Interestingly enough, Lazarenko did not go after Kuchma in this article. It seems that he still had hope that Kuchma would not press for his imprisonment, and that a deal could be cut.
Neither did Kuchma press for a drastic solution to the problem. If anything, Kuchma sought to delay Lazarenko's case and keep parliament from a vote on lifting his immunity. It is now clear that Kuchma was afraid of provoking Lazarenko into naming how much money
he might have given him.
Lazarenko felt that he was still powerful enough to conduct his businesses. On 2 December 1998, he was detained while attempting to enter Switzerland by car and using a Panamanian passport he had obtained by "investing money into the Panamanian economy." He was accompanied in the car by a man of Russian citizenship. On 4 December, he was formally arrested by Swiss authorities for money laundering in criminal case No. P/2489/98, which was being investigated in Geneva.
Lazarenko apparently was going to check on his accounts in
Switzerland, or transfer money into other, new accounts. By this time, he did not trust any of his closest cohorts to do so for him -- including his closest co-conspirator, Petro Kirichenko.
He needed to transfer money to California -- where he had
purchased a mansion in Novato (near San Francisco) for $7 million, and where his wife and children were living. The maintenance and taxes alone on the house were not insignificant, and he needed to provide for his family. Normally, he would have entrusted these tasks to Kirichenko, but for some reason he did not.
Pavlo Lazarenko spent 13 days in a jail cell in Geneva. Then on 17 December, bail in the amount of 4 million Swiss francs was posted by an unknown benefactor, and Lazarenko was allowed to go free, provided that he return to Switzerland to stand trial on money- laundering charges.
(To be continued.)
(Compiled by Roman Kupchinsky)
*********************************************************
Copyright (c) 2001. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
"RFE/RL Crime, Corruption, and Terrorism Watch" is edited by Roman Kupchinsky on the basis of a variety of sources. It is distributed every Thursday. Direct comments to Roman Kupchinsky at kupchinskyr@rferl.org. Back issues are online at http://www.rferl.org/corruptionwatch/
HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
Send an e-mail to cct-subscribe@list.rferl.org
_______________________________________________________
RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
LAZARENKO (Part 4). The case of Pavlo Ivanovych Lazarenko, once one of the most powerful men in Ukraine and now an inmate at a federal detention facility in California, is a classic study of high-level corruption in Ukraine. It involves not only Lazarenko but a long list of players beginning with the Ukrainian president (who appointed Lazarenko prime minister), to the head of the Intelligence
Service that vetted the appointment, to the Prosecutor's Office that watched as an impoverished nation was bled dry. It is also the story of a lax law-enforcement system and parliament which refused to investigate his dealings, preferring to let the dirty work be done by the United States and Switzerland and only afterwards becoming a
minor participant.
The extent of Lazarenko's activities may never be known. The
major frauds which have been documented in the West include his dealings with the Naukova State Farm, United Energy Systems of Ukraine, and the GHP Corporation scam. There is also evidence of his relationship with President Leonid Kuchma in the creation of a mobile-phone company in Ukraine, where Lazarenko's money was used as the start-up capital of this firm.
Preceding episodes of this article have shown Lazarenko to be using his official position as prime minister to enrich himself and close friends; yet he was never questioned by Ukrainian law-enforcement agencies about his activities. By 1997, Western pressure to end his corrupt term in office had become more persistent, and Ukrainian President Kuchma was forced to act.
"PAVLO FROM PANAMA"
Western pressure was growing on Kuchma to put Lazarenko behind bars. In December 1997, Kuchma fired Hryhoriy Vorsinov and appointed Oleh Lytvak as Ukraine's acting prosecutor-general. On 23 December 1997, Lytvak formally charged Lazarenko with criminal activities.
But Lazarenko was a people's deputy and therefore immune from prosecution. Not that this prevented non-members of parliament from illegal activities; but it was a convenient shield for many.
Angry at Kuchma for having relieved him of his prime minister's post, Lazarenko went on the offensive. First he created his own political party, Hromada, which he stated was in direct opposition to Kuchma. Then he proclaimed that he would run for president in the next elections. Kuchma was beginning to take notice of Lazarenko's new face. Then the offensive grew. Lazarenko wrote in October 1998:
"I want to state, and place on the record, that the 'case of
the Swiss bank accounts' and 'Lazarenko's dacha [vacation home],' and all the other, I am convinced, affairs which will be concocted by the masters of political intrigues in the Cabinet of Ministers and by the prosecutor-general are an open attempt to discredit the opposition, nothing but a commissioned political affair. Knowing our Prosecutor-
General's Office, I would not be surprised if I am to be accused of murdering the Russian Emperor, Nikolai II, or taking part in the murder of Trotsky." ("Holos Ukrainy" 28 October 1998)
Pavlo ("Pasha," as he was called by his cronies from
Dnipropetrovsk) knew his topic. He had himself witnessed many such perversions of justice by the Prosecutor-General's Office. Interestingly enough, Lazarenko did not go after Kuchma in this article. It seems that he still had hope that Kuchma would not press for his imprisonment, and that a deal could be cut.
Neither did Kuchma press for a drastic solution to the problem. If anything, Kuchma sought to delay Lazarenko's case and keep parliament from a vote on lifting his immunity. It is now clear that Kuchma was afraid of provoking Lazarenko into naming how much money
he might have given him.
Lazarenko felt that he was still powerful enough to conduct his businesses. On 2 December 1998, he was detained while attempting to enter Switzerland by car and using a Panamanian passport he had obtained by "investing money into the Panamanian economy." He was accompanied in the car by a man of Russian citizenship. On 4 December, he was formally arrested by Swiss authorities for money laundering in criminal case No. P/2489/98, which was being investigated in Geneva.
Lazarenko apparently was going to check on his accounts in
Switzerland, or transfer money into other, new accounts. By this time, he did not trust any of his closest cohorts to do so for him -- including his closest co-conspirator, Petro Kirichenko.
He needed to transfer money to California -- where he had
purchased a mansion in Novato (near San Francisco) for $7 million, and where his wife and children were living. The maintenance and taxes alone on the house were not insignificant, and he needed to provide for his family. Normally, he would have entrusted these tasks to Kirichenko, but for some reason he did not.
Pavlo Lazarenko spent 13 days in a jail cell in Geneva. Then on 17 December, bail in the amount of 4 million Swiss francs was posted by an unknown benefactor, and Lazarenko was allowed to go free, provided that he return to Switzerland to stand trial on money- laundering charges.
(To be continued.)
(Compiled by Roman Kupchinsky)
*********************************************************
Copyright (c) 2001. RFE/RL, Inc. All rights reserved.
"RFE/RL Crime, Corruption, and Terrorism Watch" is edited by Roman Kupchinsky on the basis of a variety of sources. It is distributed every Thursday. Direct comments to Roman Kupchinsky at kupchinskyr@rferl.org. Back issues are online at http://www.rferl.org/corruptionwatch/
HOW TO SUBSCRIBE
Send an e-mail to cct-subscribe@list.rferl.org
_______________________________________________________
RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC