Solomianskyi court fines Labazyuk's driver 3,400 hryvnia for silence in Nayeem case

Court ruling on deputy's driver

The Solomianskyi District Court of Kyiv issued a ruling regarding Bohdan Shudra, who serves as the personal driver to People's Deputy Serhiy Labazyuk. The judge found him guilty of refusing to give testimony within the framework of a criminal proceeding concerning the parliamentarian himself. As a punishment, Shudra was sentenced to a fine of 3,400 hryvnia.

Circumstances of refusal to testify

According to the case materials, during the interrogation, Shudra refused to answer the prosecutor's questions. It is worth noting that prior to this, he had been warned about possible criminal liability for such an action. At the time the information was published, the verdict had not yet entered into legal force, so the parties have the right to appeal it.

Context of the bribery case

The criminal proceeding in which the driver refused to testify is linked to events in 2023. At that time, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) documented an attempt to hand over a bribe. Serhiy Labazyuk and his assistant attempted to transfer 150,000 dollars to Mustafa Nayeem, then the head of the State Agency for Restoration and Infrastructure Development.

The investigation sees in the People's Deputy's actions an attempt to secure state contracts for infrastructure restoration for his companies. The total value of these contracts, according to the investigators' version, reached 1 billion hryvnia.

Prosecutor's reaction

The Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office is currently analysing the court's decision. Prosecutors are assessing whether the fine imposed on Bohdan Shudra is adequate and commensurate with the severity of the violation he committed.