The HACC refused to broadcast the hearing in the Kniazev case on YouTube due to swearing in the conversations of the defendants

The High Anti-Corruption Court held a regular hearing in the case of Vsevolod Knyazev. Photo: Court Reporter

The High Anti-Corruption Court will not broadcast court hearings in the case of former Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev on YouTube due to numerous obscene statements heard in the recordings of conversations between the defendants in the case.

This was reported by «Court Reporter».

The journalists were told that the court had previously suspended the broadcasts in part to avoid the public dissemination of obscene language, but this did not have the desired result, as the obscene words were still broadcast.

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«Therefore, all those interested can come to the court hearing and listen to it themselves,» the newspaper reported.

It should be noted that the case against Vsevolod Kniazev is being heard in open court.

It is known that the case involves a notary and former deputy of the Mykolaiv City Council, Kyrylo Horburov, with whom Kniazev had close and friendly communication «with». Horburov cooperated with the investigation when it was already in its active phase.

The Kniazev case

In May 2023, the NABU and the SAPO announced that they had uncovered a scheme to obtain undue benefits by the leadership and judges of the Supreme Court. Law enforcers detained the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Vsevolod Kniazev, and seized $2.7 million.

It was reported that former Mykolaiv City Council deputy and notary Kyrylo Horburov is one of the participants in the scheme at the Supreme Court of Ukraine, in which, according to NABU detectives, Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev was detained for a bribe of almost $3 million.

The Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev and his accomplice, a lawyer, were also served with a notice of suspicion in the bribery case. The National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) has released wiretapping records of Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev in the bribery case.

On 30 January 2024, the court reduced Kniazev's bail from 20 million hryvnias to 18.168 million hryvnias. He was released on bail from the pre-trial detention centre on 31 January. Before that, his bail had already been reduced 6 times. The previous time, on 21 December 2023, the Appeals Chamber of the High Anti-Corruption Court reduced the bail by 7 million hryvnias to 20 million hryvnias.

On 26 December 2023, the HACC investigating judge, at the request of a NABU detective, agreed by the SAPO prosecutor, limited the defence's time to review the case file. The deadline for familiarisation is 1 March inclusive.

In May 2024, a panel of judges of the High Anti-Corruption Court extended the term of office of former Supreme Court Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev, but exempted him from wearing an electronic bracelet. This was reported by Transparency International Ukraine. Vsevolod Kniazev still has to report to the court prosecutor at the first request, not to leave Ukraine, refrain from communicating with witnesses, and hand over his passports for travelling abroad. At the same time, the HACC panel decided to remove Kniazev's electronic bracelet, as the former Supreme Court chief said that he had «no electricity and no connection for six hours at his residence, so the bracelet was ineffective». Kniazev also claims that the bracelet has a negative impact on his health. In July 2024, Vsevolod Kniazev, a former head of the Supreme Court from Mykolaiv, was stopped at a border checkpoint in the village of Solotvyno in Zakarpattia region.

In December 2024, the Grand Chamber of the Supreme Court confirmed the decision of the High Council of Justice to dismiss former Chief Justice Vsevolod Kniazev from his position as a Supreme Court judge.

Also, read about how the case of Judge Vsevolod Kniazev developed, why law enforcement officers call him the organiser of a criminal group, and how the authorities reacted to the case of Ukraine's top corrupt official.