HACSC approves plea deal with lawyers Andrii Kostyra and Anton Pinzar

On 12 December, the High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine (HACSC) approved a plea deal concluded with lawyers Andrii Kostyra and Anton Pinzar. 

Both were charged with inciting a businessman to offer a bribe of $300,000 to officials of the Office of the Prosecutor General (OPG) and the State Fiscal Service (SFS).

Court ruling and imposed fines

According to the court's ruling:

• Anton Pinzar was found guilty under Part 2 of Article 369-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. He was sentenced to a fine of UAH 93,500. As part of the deal, Pinzar agreed to transfer UAH 4.11 million to the UNITED24 initiative, aimed at restoring schools and equipping them with generators.

• Andrii Kostyra, also found guilty under the same article, received a fine of UAH 93,500. In addition, he agreed to transfer UAH 1.61 million to the UNITED24 project and UAH 2.5 million to Serhiy Prytula's charitable foundation.

Case background

An investigation conducted by the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) revealed that in 2021, the lawyers acted in premeditation and in collusion with unidentified individuals. They offered the businessman a bribe to terminate the criminal case related to the distribution of substances that do not possess medicinal properties and are not registered in Ukraine.

In addition, the lawyers promised to:

• Return the seized premium-class vehicles (Mercedes-Benz S400 CDI, Porsche Macan GTS, Bentley Continental GT, Land Rover Range Rover).
• Secure the termination of the investigation.

To carry out their intentions, the lawyers planned to hand over $300,000 to officials of the Main Investigative Department of Financial Investigations of the SFS and the OPG. They expected to receive a personal fee of $20,000.

Pressure tactics and rejection of the deal

To force the businessman to agree, the lawyers threatened to continue the investigation, file charges, and maintain the seizure of property. However, the victim rejected the deal and reported the incident to law enforcement agencies.