Ukraine’s ex-PM Tymoshenko to be questioned in murder case

PanARMENIAN.Net - Jailed former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko will be questioned over the 1996 murder of a businessman, Prosecutor General Viktor Pshonka said on Thursday, April 5, RIA Novosti reported.

The Prosecutor General’s Office reopened the murder case following new evidence provided by the son of slain businessman Yevhen Shcherban, pointing to Tymoshenko’s involvement.

Shcherban’s son also alleged his father’s murder was paid for by firms affiliated with Tymoshenko.

“Tymoshenko is to be questioned about this case,” Pshonka said, adding that she will be initially questioned as a witness. “And then it is up to the investigation to decide,” he said.

He also said Ukraine is to pay Russia $405.5 million over financial irregularities at Ukraine’s Integrated Energy Systems on Tymoshenko’s watch.

In October 2011, Tymoshenko was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of abuse of office, for exceeding her authority in signing a 2009 gas deal with Russia. Her trial was condemned by both the European Union and Russia as politically motivated.

She is currently serving her sentence in a women’s prison near Ukraine's second largest city, Kharkov.