Kravchenko blames Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies for plot to attack him in Austria

Former Ukrainian Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko alleges that officials from the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO) coordinated a plan to carry out violent acts against him in Austria. He stated that these actions were supposedly ordered by the President's Office. Kravchenko made these claims on social media, yet he did not provide a clear explanation for why he has not returned to Ukraine following his official trip.

Kravchenko said he received information in September that a group of individuals was sent after him. "Back in September, I received information that a group of individuals had been sent after me to carry out unlawful acts of violence against me," he wrote. He added that he was told directly that the heads of NABU and SAPO had requested the group be deployed.

According to Kravchenko, two military personnel from the Artan unit of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU) were detained in Austria. He claimed one of these individuals previously worked in NABU's surveillance unit. The unit's commander, Viktor Torkotiuk, was also present in Austria at the time of the detentions. Kravchenko asserted that the group received orders from the Office of the President, though he said he did not have reliable information on who exactly issued the criminal order.

Kravchenko noted that Torkotiuk was promised a promotion in exchange for the operation. He drew parallels to an incident in Monaco earlier this summer involving similar personnel. "I also see parallels with similar events that took place in Monaco this summer," Kravchenko said. He mentioned that prosecutors from the Office of the Prosecutor General are handling that criminal case and that he has information about the circumstances of those events.

The former prosecutor general also pointed to journalists from Ukrainska Pravda who had been searching for him in Vienna. He claimed Austrian authorities are investigating four people, including two representatives from the outlet. Mykhailo Tkach, one of the journalists, was in Monaco shortly before the incident involving DIU personnel and was in Vienna during their detention. Kravchenko stated that the legal assessment of these links falls within the remit of European law enforcement authorities.

Kravchenko left Ukraine on the night of September 13 and 14. An order he signed stated he was due to spend five days in Paris to attend hearings at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe regarding Ukrainian children. However, his name did not appear on the list of participants for the discussion. His official trip ended on September 18. Mariana Haiovska, spokesperson for the Office of the Prosecutor General, told Ukrainska Pravda that Kravchenko had not returned to work by September 21.

Vienna prosecutors said the detention of journalists Mykhailo Tkach and Yaroslav Bondarenko was prompted by eyewitness testimony. The journalists were detained on October 8 while working on a story about locating Kravchenko. Austria's Interior Ministry initially suspected Tkach of espionage, though that suspicion was later not substantiated. Tkach reported that armed masked men smashed the windows of his car and dragged him and Bondarenko out onto the road during the arrest.

Tkach said he and his cameraman were accused of three offenses: espionage on behalf of Ukrainian military intelligence, participation in a criminal organisation, and causing harm to Austria. He described how one of the men knelt on his neck while he insisted he was a journalist. Bondarenko was injured during the detention. Tkach was released on October 9, but the newsroom had not yet been able to contact him. Tkach later suggested that testimony from people linked to Kravchenko might have led to their detention.

In June, an explosion in Monaco injured sanctioned Ukrainian businessman Vadym Yermolaiev and two others, two of whom were seriously hurt. Yermolaiev accused DIU personnel of involvement in the attempted assassination. He claimed the attackers saw his wife and child and intended to kill all three. He called for an independent investigation and asked authorities in Monaco, Ukraine, and France to guarantee his family's protection. Kravchenko's new claims link this earlier incident to the recent events in Austria.