The HCJ Delays Opening Cases Against 36 DACK Judges

Thirty-six judges of the District Administrative Court of Kyiv (DACK) may begin working in other courts unless the High Council of Justice (HCJ) brings them to disciplinary liability. Over five years have passed since the release of the NABU recordings, but the HCJ has only dismissed four DACK judges so far.

Here are the “achievements” of just five judges from this list, all of whom were close to Pavlo Vovk:

Ruslan Arsiriy — a judge who was “rewriting” the history of the Maidan. In 2021, acting on a lawsuit filed by Portnov, he ordered the Ministry of Education to revise history textbooks that mentioned crimes committed by Berkut during the Revolution of Dignity. The appellate court later overturned this decision. Arsiriy also reinstated police officers who had failed the re-attestation process and interfered in the case of MP Rosenblatt, who was implicated in bribery in the “amber case.” He was also repeatedly captured in NABU’s wiretaps from Vovk’s office, where the DACK head openly discussed plans to take control of the High Qualification Commission of Judges (HQCJ) and influence DACK judges — all in Arsiriy’s presence.

Bohdan Sanin is a defendant in a criminal case regarding the “Vovk’s tapes”. In November 2013, he banned any peaceful assembly on Maidan, Khreshchatyk, and all central streets of Kyiv from December 1, 2013, to January 7, 2014. His decision effectively criminalized millions of people who joined the Maidan protests. On December 9, 2013, Sanin’s colleague, judge Yevhen Ablov, used this ruling to order Berkut to disperse the protest. Sanin also possesses questionable assets, and his appointment to DACK likely happened through his father-in-law, a former MP from the Party of Regions who sent “titushky” (pro-government thugs) to Kyiv.

Volodymyr Keleberda — one of Vovk’s close associates — helped implement a scheme to seize control of the High Qualification Commission of Judges. He aided the former head of the State Judicial Administration and DACK tape figure Khodoniuk in remaining in office by overturning the results of the competition for a new head. In return, Khodoniuk appointed two Vovk-loyal individuals to the HQCJ. For his involvement, Keleberda was charged in a criminal case.

Tetyana Skochok — a former assistant to the notorious Andriy Portnov, later became a DACK judge. Under Vovk’s “supervision,” she handled a lawsuit filed by the scandalous politician Dubinsky seeking to ban officials from leaving the country for one year after elections or dismissal from office. This travel ban for top officials from the Poroshenko era was intended by DACK judges to demonstrate their power.

Vitaliy Amelyokhin also appears in the NABU tapes from Vovk’s office. In one recording, a person with a voice similar to Amelyokhin’s agrees — at Vovk’s direction — to draft an interrogation and investigative plan for a State Bureau of Investigations officer working on the case involving HQCJ members.

DEJURE Foundation urges the Service of the Disciplinary Inspectors not to delay in preparing conclusions for the opening of disciplinary cases against these and other DACK judges, and calls on the HCJ not to postpone the consideration of these cases. The more time passes, the weaker the public outcry and memory of the unlawful actions and rulings by these judges. Meanwhile, the millions in salaries these judges receive could be better directed toward strengthening the country’s defense.