Educational Technology and Change Journal

By Jim Shimabukuro (assisted by Claude)
Editor

To understand the allegations swirling around Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, one must first understand the mechanics of the scheme that set off Ukraine’s most damaging corruption scandal since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. Operation Midas is an anti-corruption investigation by Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), launched in 2024, concerning large-scale bribery in Ukraine’s energy sector during the Russo-Ukrainian war.

During the 15-month covert data-collection phase, investigators conducted more than 70 searches, seized approximately $4 million in cash, and accumulated roughly 1,000 hours of audio recordings [1]. The scheme itself was elegant in its brutality. Two insiders installed at Energoatom — Ihor Myroniuk and Dmytro Basov — controlled all contracts the company signed with suppliers, from whom they demanded a 10–15% kickback. Any supplier who refused risked going unpaid for goods and services already rendered [2].

The money then moved through a sophisticated laundering network. The funds from kickbacks were channeled through a back office run by Mindich’s friend and business associate Oleksandr Tsukerman, with the help of three other individuals: Ihor Fursenko, Lesya Ustymenko, and Lyudmyla Zorina [2]. Ominously, some suspects in the Energoatom scheme had connections to Andriy Derkach, a former Ukrainian politician and one-time president of Energoatom, who reportedly ran a network of Russian agents in Ukraine in the lead-up to the full-scale invasion. Sanctioned by the United States and Ukraine, Derkach fled to Russia in January 2023, where he currently serves as a senator. The back office of the Mindich operation was housed in an apartment belonging to the Derkach family [2].

At the apex of the alleged criminal enterprise stands Tymur Mindich, whose ties to Zelenskyy are deep and pre-political. Mindich was one of Zelenskyy’s closest associates before the latter became president in 2019 and is co-owner of Kvartal 95, the production company Zelenskyy co-founded. After being elected, Zelenskyy transferred his stake in the company to other partners [3]. Mindich reportedly fled to Israel prior to the NABU raid on his home [4]. Anti-corruption activist Tetiana Shevchuk of Ukraine’s Anti-Corruption Action Center was blunt: Mindich “would have never been in politics, never been in a position of power or business without his connection to Zelenskyy, and this magnitude is worse because it’s happening during wartime, and it is related to energy infrastructure at a time when Ukrainians don’t have electricity in their homes” [5].

The human cost of the scheme was not abstract. The group was accused by investigators of embezzling public money that should have been spent repairing Ukraine’s energy grid, including payments from contractors building fortifications against Russian attacks on energy infrastructure — while millions of Ukrainians suffered power outages and blackouts [6].

The Associates: How Close Did the Circle Get to Zelenskyy?

The four named associates — Mindich, Chief of Staff Andriy Yermak, Energy/Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko, and Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk — represent varying degrees of formal implication and proximity to the president.

Of these, Halushchenko has faced the most consequential legal action. On February 15, 2026, Halushchenko was detained by NABU while attempting to cross the Ukrainian border on the Kyiv-Warsaw train and was subsequently charged with participating in a criminal organization and laundering proceeds obtained by criminal means. According to NABU, Halushchenko and his family members became investors in a fictitious investment fund created to launder the $100 million siphoned from Energoatom [1]. Investigators allege Halushchenko’s family received over $7.4 million transferred into fund accounts, with more than 1.3 million Swiss francs and 2.4 million euros allegedly withdrawn in cash and delivered to his family in Switzerland [7]. Despite serving as energy minister from 2021 to 2025 — the very period the scheme flourished — Halushchenko features prominently in the “Mindich tapes” as someone providing political cover and access to the office of the president [2]. Crucially, in July 2025, just as NABU was closing in, Halushchenko was moved from energy minister to justice minister — the ministry that oversees prosecution policy — a reshuffle that critics found deeply suspicious.

Yermak’s situation is perhaps the most politically explosive, given that he was described as Ukraine’s “second most powerful man,” who effectively engineered a power vertical by staffing key offices across government and exerting informal influence over the legislative and judicial branches [8]. Yermak resigned after NABU conducted searches at his home as part of the Energoatom investigation, at which point eight suspects had been charged and the anti-corruption bureau had reported the group was collecting bribes from Energoatom contractors amounting to 10–15% of each contract’s value [9]. Ukrainska Pravda reported that Yermak is identified as “Ali Baba” in NABU recordings, and a law enforcement source told the Kyiv Independent that one of the luxury houses near Kyiv financed through the Energoatom scheme was intended for Yermak [10]. Ukraine’s chief anti-corruption prosecutor Oleksandr Klymenko said that according to investigators, “Ali Baba is holding meetings and assigning tasks to law enforcement agencies to ensure they persecute NABU detectives and anti-corruption prosecutors” [11].

As for Hrynchuk, she resigned as energy minister in November 2025 alongside Halushchenko. She was suspected of close personal ties to Halushchenko and became energy minister when he vacated that post to take over at the Justice Ministry in July 2025 [2]. Neither she nor Halushchenko had been formally charged as of the initial November 2025 wave of prosecutions, though Halushchenko’s arrest in February 2026 changed that calculus dramatically [12].

The Strongest Arguments That Zelenskyy Was Complicit or Aware

The circumstantial case against Zelenskyy — while not amounting to a formal criminal allegation — is substantial and rests on several interlocking pillars.

The first and most damning is the July 2025 attempt to strip NABU and SAPO of their independence. On July 22, 2025, Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada passed a controversial law, Bill No. 12414, that stripped NABU and SAPO of independence and gave new powers to the Prosecutor General, a Zelenskyy loyalist [13]. Based on sources within parliament, law enforcement agencies, and the president’s team, Ukrainska Pravda reported that the plan against NABU and SAPO had been developed within the President’s Office, particularly by Yermak, after investigations against various figures that upset Zelenskyy [13]. Critics were direct in their interpretation: the Mindich tapes document exactly the kind of high-level corruption the July crackdown was designed to bury [14]. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) arrested NABU detectives, including those later confirmed to have been leading Operation Midas, and a similar allegation of “Russian ties” was used to block the appointment of an independent nominee to head another anti-corruption body [8]. The European Union responded by threatening to freeze €1.7 billion in aid, and the law was reversed only after massive public protests — the first anti-government demonstrations since the start of the Russian invasion [15].

Second is the extraordinary personal proximity between Zelenskyy and Mindich. Mindich and oligarch Ihor Kolomoysky were instrumental in bringing Zelenskyy to power in the 2019 presidential elections, and Zelenskyy even traveled in Mindich’s personal armored car during the campaign. Zelenskyy also owned a high-end apartment in the same building as Mindich, where NABU investigators discovered a gold-plated bathroom Mindich had installed [16]. In 2021, the president reportedly celebrated his birthday in Mindich’s apartment [3].

Third, the most recent “Mindich tapes,” released in late April 2026, deepened suspicion considerably. Recordings made in Mindich’s apartment in the summer of 2025 feature conversations with Serhii Shefir, Zelenskyy’s former first presidential aide, in which Mindich and Shefir discuss raising funds for the bail of former Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Chernyshov, who was under investigation for corruption [17]. A separate recording involving a woman named Natalia appears to concern construction of four mansions in the Dynasty cooperative complex near Kyiv, with sources at Ukrainska Pravda identifying the properties as being built for Zelenskyy, Yermak, Chernyshov, and Mindich. The interlocutors mention construction belonging to “Andrii” and “Vova,” and discuss a fence being poured between Mindich’s property and “Vova’s” [18]. References to “Vova” — a common diminutive of Volodymyr — have fueled speculation about Zelenskyy’s personal involvement, though as Ukrainska Pravda itself acknowledged, no direct evidence has been presented linking the president to wrongdoing in these recordings [19]. The lack of clear authentication and the absence of original audio have also raised questions about reliability, though Ukrainska Pravda is widely regarded as a credible outlet with strong investigative credentials [19].

Fourth, opposition parliamentarian Oleksiy Honcharenko gave voice to a view held by many when he told PBS: “I hope not [that Zelenskyy knew]. But I don’t know. But he was definitely, absolutely aware of what the system Yermak was building. Because he was building it under his orders” [6]. A report from February 2026 revealed that Zelenskyy had indicated to anti-corruption agency heads that he would not be able to “move forward” if charges were filed against members of his closest circle, as such steps could jeopardize negotiations with U.S. and European partners [20] — a comment that critics read as an attempt to use wartime diplomacy as a shield against accountability.

The Strongest Arguments Against Zelenskyy’s Involvement

There is, however, a credible and coherent counternarrative that cautions against conflating proximity to corruption with participation in it.

The most important single fact is that Zelenskyy has not been charged, implicated, or named as a formal suspect by NABU or SAPO. Despite his history with Mindich, Zelenskyy was not implicated in the investigation [5]. The Atlantic Council observed that while the sheer number of criminal investigations and indictments targeting prominent Ukrainian officials has raised concerns about possible political prosecutions, the apparent success of Operation Midas and its exposure of alleged corruption among some of the most powerful people in Ukraine seems to confirm the agency’s independence and its efficacy [21]. An independent investigative body, unconstrained by the presidency after July’s law was reversed, had every opportunity and apparent motivation to pursue the president if evidence existed — and it has not done so.

Zelenskyy’s response to the scandal was substantively cooperative rather than obstructive once NABU went public. In his evening address following NABU’s announcement, Zelenskyy supported the bureau’s actions, emphasizing that “everyone who perpetrated these schemes must receive a clear procedural response — there must be convictions,” and imposed National Security and Defense Council sanctions on Mindich and Tsukerman, including freezing their assets [1]. On Zelenskyy’s request, the Cabinet of Ministers promptly fired Halushchenko as justice minister and accepted Hrynchuk’s resignation as energy minister [2]. A president complicit in the scheme would have had stronger incentives to protect those officials rather than sacrifice them.

The July 2025 law, while widely criticized, is susceptible to alternative interpretations. Zelenskyy defended it by claiming NABU and SAPO needed to “get rid of Russian influence,” citing the arrest of two NABU staffers suspected of working for Russian intelligence [15]. Ukraine operates under martial law, and fears of Russian infiltration of state institutions are not fabricated. While the timing of the law — just as Operation Midas was advancing — looks compromising, the possibility that it was a clumsy response to genuine security concerns cannot be entirely dismissed. Zelenskyy announced on July 23 that he would submit a new draft law restoring the independence of NABU and SAPO, submitting it the following day [13].

The energy sector corruption exposed by Operation Midas also predates Zelenskyy’s presidency in important respects. Energy expert Oleh Savytskyi wrote that Operation Midas exposes what he calls “GULAG culture” — a Soviet-era mentality where energy sector managers treated state assets as personal fiefdoms, with the same networks controlling Ukraine’s energy sector through kickbacks and political protection across every presidency since independence [14]. Key figures in the Midas investigation, including Myroniuk, had roots in earlier administrations and were connected to the Derkach network that predated Zelenskyy. This context suggests that while Zelenskyy’s presidency may have provided cover for the scheme’s expansion, he may not have been its architect or even a knowing beneficiary.

Anti-corruption activist Tetiana Shevchuka, interviewed by Al Jazeera in January 2026, offered a nuanced view from within Ukraine’s civil society: “I think he wanted to show that he’s doing everything he can from his side. He has also tried to distance himself from the scandal, saying he is independent and not involved. He wants to show that he lets the agencies do their work” [22].

The Quality of Evidence Against Zelenskyy

Being precise about evidentiary quality is essential. As of May 2026, no direct evidence — wiretaps, financial records, testimony, or documentary proof — links Zelenskyy personally to the Energoatom kickback scheme. What exists instead is a dense web of circumstantial and associational evidence that is troubling but not legally probative against him specifically.

The NABU recordings are extensive and appear credible. The agency described the investigation as involving 1,000 hours of audio recordings, and the European Commission noted that the investigation demonstrates that Ukraine’s anti-corruption watchdogs are functioning and “allowed to function” [9]. The most recent recordings published by Ukrainska Pravda in late April 2026 — capturing Mindich’s conversations with Shefir and Umerov — have not been confirmed authentic by NABU, which has neither confirmed nor denied their authenticity. The original audio has not been published, only transcripts read aloud by journalist Mykhailo Tkach. Mindich has filed a defamation suit in response to their publication [23]. Ukrainska Pravda itself acknowledged that the transcripts do not present evidence of new crimes, though the publication argues the material reinforces perceptions of close ties between Mindich and Ukraine’s political leadership [19].

The reference to “Vova” in the construction-related recording is perhaps the most suggestive detail touching Zelenskyy personally, with Zelenskyy’s former press secretary subsequently confirming that “Vova” is indeed a nickname for the president [24]. However, a shared luxury housing development — if real — would implicate Zelenskyy in potential corruption related to that project, not necessarily in the Energoatom kickback scheme itself, and the legal significance of proximity to Mindich’s real estate activity has not been established by investigators.

NABU director Semen Kryvonos confirmed in February 2026 that the bureau is not serving new notices of suspicion at that stage, but expects additional details in the case, cooperating with approximately ten jurisdictions, including EU countries, to obtain information on financial transactions, accounts, and assets [20]. The investigation remains open, and the full evidentiary picture has not been made public. Since Yermak’s resignation, pressure on NABU has continued in quieter forms: coordinated smear campaigns in pro-government Telegram channels targeting NABU leadership personally, and a secret draft Cabinet resolution that could have removed NABU’s director — though the Cabinet never voted on it [25]. This pattern of continued friction between the president’s orbit and the investigators is itself circumstantially significant, even if it does not constitute proof of Zelenskyy’s personal involvement in Energoatom corruption.

Conclusion

The Energoatom scandal, whatever its ultimate legal outcome for Zelenskyy himself, has severely damaged his legacy as the anti-corruption president who rose to power promising to break Ukraine’s entrenched system of graft. The evidence that directly implicates Zelenskyy in the kickback scheme remains thin — circumstantial, associational, and in some recent cases, not yet independently authenticated. What is far better documented is that his inner circle — built on personal loyalties stretching back to the Kvartal 95 years — became either participants in or enablers of one of the largest corruption schemes in Ukrainian history, at the worst possible moment: during a war in which the integrity of energy infrastructure is a matter of national survival. As the Brookings Institution observed, as the case unfolds, more unpleasant discoveries are likely to surface, threatening to irreparably mar Zelenskyy’s legacy [2].

References

[1] Wikipedia — “Operation Midas”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Midas

[2] Brookings Institution — “War, peace, and corruption in embattled Ukraine” (December 8, 2025): https://www.brookings.edu/articles/war-peace-and-corruption-in-embattled-ukraine/

[3] Euronews — “Operation ‘Midas’: All you need to know about anti-corruption investigation in Ukraine” (November 15, 2025): https://www.euronews.com/2025/11/15/operation-midas-all-you-need-to-know-about-anti-corruption-investigation-in-ukraine

[4] OAN — “Ukrainian anti-corruption watchdog uncovers $100 million embezzlement scheme within Zelensky’s inner circle” (November 16, 2025): https://www.oann.com/newsroom/ukrainian-anti-corruption-watchdog-uncovers-100-million-embezzlement-scheme-within-zelenskys-inner-circle/

[5] Wisdom 92.1 / AP — “Former Zelenskyy associate accused in $100 million embezzlement scheme” (November 15, 2025): https://www.wzdm.com/2025/11/15/former-zelenskyy-associate-accused-in-100-million-embezzlement-scheme/

[6] PBS NewsHour — “Corruption scandal rocks Ukraine as it fights for survival against Russia’s invasion” (December 5, 2025): https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/corruption-scandal-rocks-ukraine-as-it-fights-for-survival-against-russias-invasion

[7] OCCRP — “Ukraine Charges Ex Energy Minister with Money Laundering in ‘Operation Midas’ Case” (February 16, 2026): https://www.occrp.org/en/news/ukraine-charges-ex-energy-minister-with-money-laundering-in-operation-midas-case

[8] International Centre for Defence and Security — “Ukraine After Yermak: The End of Power Vertical Built by Zelensky’s Shadow Man?” (December 16, 2025): https://icds.ee/en/ukraine-after-yermak-the-end-of-power-vertical-built-by-zelenskys-shadow-man/

[9] Euronews — “Zelenskyy’s chief of staff Yermak resigns after Ukraine anti-corruption investigators raid” (November 28, 2025): https://www.euronews.com/2025/11/28/anti-corruption-investigators-raid-zelenskyys-chief-of-staff-yermak

[10] Euromaidan Press — “Head of Zelenskyy’s Office Yermak resigns following anti-corruption probe” (November 28, 2025): https://euromaidanpress.com/2025/11/28/head-of-zelenskyys-office-resigns/

[11] Kyiv Independent — “Zelensky’s chief of staff Yermak resigns amid Ukraine’s biggest corruption scandal” (November 28, 2025): https://kyivindependent.com/zelenskys-chief-of-staff-yermak/

[12] Euromaidan Press — “Ukraine charges ex-energy minister in Operation Midas case” (February 16, 2026): https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/02/16/ukraine-ex-energy-minister-halushchenko-charged-midas/

[13] Wikipedia — “2025 anti-corruption protests in Ukraine”: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_anti-corruption_protests_in_Ukraine

[14] Euromaidan Press — “Zelenskyy tried to kill NABU. Then it exposed his friend’s $100M scheme.” (November 14, 2025): https://euromaidanpress.com/2025/11/12/nabu-survived-zelenskyys-july-purge-to-expose-his-friends-100m-racket-now-comes-the-harder-test/

[15] Al Jazeera — “Why did Zelenskyy try to curb autonomy of Ukraine’s anti-graft agencies?” (July 29, 2025): https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/7/29/why-zelenskyy-tried-to-curb-autonomy-of-ukraines-anticorruption-agencies

[16] World Socialist Web Site — “Zelensky’s chief of staff and closest ally forced to resign amid massive corruption scandal”: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/12/01/wqgk-d01.html

[17] Ukrainska Pravda — “Ukrainska Pravda releases recordings from Midas case involving Mindich and senior officials” (April 29, 2026): https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2026/04/29/8032290/

[18] Ukrainska Pravda — “Mindich tapes mention mansions likely built for Zelenskyy, Yermak and Mindich himself” (April 29, 2026): https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2026/04/29/8032330/

[19] TFI Global News — “Mindich Leak Scandal: Explosive Tapes Link Zelenskyy’s Inner Circle to Corruption Probe” (April 30, 2026): https://tfiglobalnews.com/2026/04/30/mindich-leak-scandal-explosive-tapes-link-zelenskyys-inner-circle-to-corruption-probe/

[20] Ukrainska Pravda — “Operation Midas investigators working with around 10 jurisdictions, Ukrainian anti-corruption agency says” (February 10, 2026): https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2026/02/10/8020356/

[21] Atlantic Council — “Zelenskyy faces the biggest corruption scandal of his presidency” (November 17, 2025): https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert/zelenskyy-faces-the-biggest-corruption-scandal-of-his-presidency/

[22] Al Jazeera — “‘Not an easy process’: How is Ukraine, and Zelenskyy, tackling corruption?” (January 27, 2026): https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/1/27/1865

[23] Euromaidan Press — “Mindichgate widens: new tapes force an impossible choice on Ukraine’s missile maker” (May 1, 2026): https://euromaidanpress.com/2026/05/01/mindich-tapes-implicate-umerov-fire-point/

[24] Denmark Pravda — “Nye Minich Tapes: This is how European billions disappeared into a web of power corruption and luxury villas” (May 1, 2026): https://denmark.news-pravda.com/en/world/2026/05/01/24835.html

[25] Euromaidan Press / Uazmi — “After July’s failed assault on NABU’s independence, Ukrainian government tried a quieter approach” (March 24, 2026): https://uazmi.com/news/post/659599e6de544f26a212aa17bc88e18c

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