June 30, 2011 - 18:28 AMT
Yulia Tymoshenko, Yuriy Lutsenko’s property frozen

Part of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's and former Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko’s property has been frozen, Deputy Prosecutor General Mykhailo Havryliuk said.

"The defendants' property has been frozen under all criminal cases that have been forwarded to courts today," Havryliuk said at a news conference on Thursday, June 30, Interfax reported.

Ukraine’s former prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, went on trial in a case that has raised concerns in the West over the government's commitment to democracy and the rule of law. Tymoshenko, now a top opposition leader, has been charged with abuse of office in signing a deal with Moscow to buy Russian natural gas at prices investigators said were too high. She denies the charges, and describes them as a political plot by her rival, President Viktor Yanukovych, to keep her out of upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections.