The founder of the anti-corruption organization StateWatch and activist Oleksandr Lemenov, who is suspected of evading mobilization, filed an appeal against the preventive measure chosen for him. In the Court of Appeal, the hearing of this appeal is scheduled for January 28, 2025.
Oleksandr Lemienov is accused of evading the draft during mobilization, for a special period, in particular, because of the refusal to receive a summons and failure to appear at the assembly point. According to the decision of the investigating judge of the Bilotserkiv city district court dated December 27, 2024, he was ordered to take a preventive measure in the form of bail in the amount of UAH 60,560. In addition, Lemienov is required to regularly appear before the investigator, prosecutor or court at the first summons and to report a change of residence.
The investigators note that Lemenov, having a military accounting specialty and being recognized as fit for service, deliberately evaded mobilization and did not show up at the assembly point. His refusal to receive the summons was recorded in the presence of two witnesses.
Lemienov was informed of the suspicion under Art. 336 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, which provides for a penalty of up to 5 years of imprisonment. From the beginning of the mobilization, from November 24, 2024, Lemenov was declared wanted, as he shied away from fulfilling his duties and did not appear at the summons of the investigator.
The investigating judge noted that the suspect was aware of the seriousness of the situation in which the country is, but deliberately evaded his duties, which violates moral and legal principles in the conditions of war.
This case gains additional resonance due to Lemenov's connection with other anti-corruption activists, who also, according to various sources, avoided fulfilling their duties during the mobilization. In the business environment, this phenomenon was called "shabuning", after one of the famous activists.
In particular, it is known that the other founder of StateWatch, Hleb Kanevsky, after a long evasion of military service, worked in the Ministry of Defense, where he became a figure in numerous corruption scandals, in particular, regarding overpriced purchases for the army.
As it became known, similar cases took place among other well-known activists, including the heads of the Anti-Corruption Center, such as Daria Kaleniuk and Vitilii Shabunin, as well as blogger Yuri Butusov and others. This raises the question of the ethics of such persons who claim to fight corruption while at the same time evading their duties to the state.
