Ukrainian authorities have apprehended Oleksandr Dubinsky, a controversial MP central to Rudy Giuliani’s attempts to uncover compromising information about Joe Biden.
Dubinsky, 42, faces charges of colluding with Russia and disseminating “fake” information about Ukraine’s political and military leadership, particularly regarding alleged Ukrainian interference in US political processes.
The charges were announced on Monday, with Dubinsky appearing in a closed court session in Kyiv on Tuesday.
In a video on his Telegram account, the politician revealed he had been placed in pre-trial detention for 60 days, potentially facing up to 15 years in jail if convicted.
Elected as an MP from President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s Servant of the People party in 2019, Dubinsky was later expelled for insubordination.
The Ukrainian SBU intelligence service arrested him on suspicion of treason, asserting that he had engaged in “information and subversive activities in favor of Russia.”
Former MP Andriy Derkach and former prosecutor Kostiantyn Kulych are also implicated, believed to be in hiding outside Ukraine.
The SBU stated that the organization’s primary goal was to exploit Ukraine’s political tensions and tarnish its international reputation, allegedly receiving over $10 million from Russian military intelligence.
In late 2019, as impeachment charges against Donald Trump were being drafted, Dubinsky and Derkach held press conferences in Kyiv, claiming to expose corruption at a Ukrainian company where Biden’s son Hunter had served on the board.
Giuliani, then the president’s personal lawyer, met with Dubinsky and Derkach in Ukraine, seeking material to exonerate Trump and uncover corruption by the Bidens.
In 2020, US authorities labeled Derkach an “active Russian agent,” and in 2021, Dubinsky was placed on a sanctions list for his alleged involvement in a “Russia-linked foreign influence network” attempting to undermine Biden’s 2020 election campaign.
Despite being expelled from Zelenskiy’s party after the US designation, Dubinsky continued as an MP.
Known as a close ally of billionaire oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, a strong supporter of Zelenskiy, Dubinsky has consistently denied all charges, attributing them to political persecution for criticizing the authorities throughout his parliamentary career.
Source: reddit.com
