Kravchenko claims plot to harm him in Austria

Ruslan Kravchenko, the former prosecutor general of Ukraine, is currently a fugitive from the country. He recently accused the national anti-corruption agencies of planning to harm him while he was in Austria.

In a post on social media on 28 October, Kravchenko stated that he received information in September about a group sent to commit unlawful acts of violence against him. He claimed the heads of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) requested this group be deployed. Kravchenko said the orders for the operation came from the Office of the President.

The former official identified two military personnel from the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine's Artan unit as part of this group. He noted that one of the soldiers had previously worked in NABU's surveillance unit. Viktor Torkotiuk, the commander of the unit, was present in Austria when his subordinates were detained, according to Kravchenko.

Kravchenko suggested that Torkotiuk was promised a promotion in exchange for the operation. He drew a parallel between this alleged plot and an explosion in Monaco in June that injured the sanctioned businessman Vadym Yermolaiev. Yermolaiev had previously accused DIU personnel of involvement in that incident.

The former prosecutor general also addressed the recent detention of journalists from Ukrainska Pravda in Vienna. He claimed that Austrian authorities are investigating four people, including two representatives from that news outlet. Mykhailo Tkach, one of the detained reporters, was in Monaco shortly before the June incident and in Vienna during the October detention, Kravchenko noted.

Kravchenko said the legal assessment of these events falls to European law enforcement. However, he did not explain why he has not returned to Ukraine. He left the country on the night of 13 to 14 September. An order he signed indicated he was due to spend five days in Paris for hearings at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. His official trip ended on 18 September.

Mariana Haiovska, a spokesperson for the Office of the Prosecutor General, told Ukrainska Pravda that Kravchenko had not returned to work by 21 September. His name did not appear on the list of participants for the parliamentary discussion he was reportedly attending. He remains abroad as of 28 October.