Prominent Ukrainian journalist Khrystyna Zelenyuk has reported receiving serious threats and extortion of large sums of money. She says that after the death of her mother's husband, a Belarusian businessman and politician who had been persecuted by the regime of Alexander Lukashenko, the family came under pressure.
The journalist claims that the main figure in the case is the former head of the State Food and Grain Corporation of Ukraine (SFGCU), Petro Vovchuk. In 2017–2023, he was hiding from the investigation in Lithuania, and after extradition to Ukraine, he received a suspended sentence for causing losses to the state-owned enterprise of more than $60 million. According to Zelenyuk, it was he who blackmailed her stepfather for years, and later took over a controlling stake in the company, which owns a large real estate in Kyiv.
After the businessman's death, Khrystyna and her mother regained control of the company, but according to her, new demands began to come from Vovchuk. His lawyer Yaroslav Butyrin demanded $600,000 and control of the company, which later increased to $2 million. In addition, through a front person, a lawsuit was filed against the journalist's mother to seize the business and the building.
The journalist emphasizes that she has documents and audio recordings that confirm the illegal interference and pressure. She also suggests that Vovchuk may maintain ties with representatives of the Belarusian regime, which poses a danger not only to her family, but also to her international journalistic work.
Separately, Khrystyna draws attention to the fact that her mother rents land at the D.K. Zabolotny Institute of Microbiology and Virology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, around which raiding attempts have also recently been recorded. In her opinion, the coincidence of these events is not accidental.
Zelenyuk calls for the case to be widely publicized, emphasizing that it is not only about money, but also about the safety of her family.
