Ukraine’s chief prosecutor resigns over call centre corruption scandal

Ukraine’s chief prosecutor Ruslan Kravchenko has resigned over corruption allegations related to illegal call centres in the country.It follows a search of his offices over the weekend by Ukrainian anti-corruption investigators, who said they had identified a money-laundering scheme led by an official in Kravchenko’s office.In his resignation letter, Kravchenko said he did not want his position to be used as a “tool for political confrontation”, and referenced an earlier post in which he rejected the claims as “unsubstantiated”.Corruption scandals have plagued Kyiv throughout the war against Russia, with accusations levelled at several members of President Volodymyr Zelensky’s inner circle.According to Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (Nabu) and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (Sap), the network in Kravchenko’s office received money to protect call centres that carried out phone scams and “laundered millions in assets”.The money was then used to buy property, jewellery, and other valuables, according to Nabu.Kravchenko released a statement on Sunday evening dismissing the allegations as “completely unsubstantiated”, and denied any wrongdoing.He tendered his resignation a day later, thanking Zelensky and the Ukrainian parliament for their “trust”. The Ukrainian president is yet to comment publicly on the resignation.Despite the creation of two Ukrainian anti-corruption bodies, Nabu and Sap, over a decade ago, corruption continues to be a significant problem in the country. In 2025, nationwide protests broke out after Zelensky tried to implement reforms that would curb the independence of Nabu and Sap. Kyiv’s European partners expressed alarm at the announcement, with ambassadors from the G7 group of nations warning it could endanger Ukraine’s integration into the European Union. Ukraine is an EU candidate country, a status it was granted on condition it mounted a credible fight against corruption.Zelensky reinstated the freedom of the two anti-corruption bodies as a result of the backlash, but questions have persisted over his commitment to anti-corruption reform.Last month, Nabu said it had uncovered a scheme to misappropriate more than $3m (£2.2m) in Ukrainian currency to pay bail for a former energy minister accused of money laundering.A senior official in Zelensky’s office alleged to be involved was sacked.