Over 460 million hryvnias were “laundered” for the construction of the “Dynasty” cottage community in the Kyiv region. Andriy Yermak was ordered to be held in custody for two months, with the option to post bail in the amount of 140 million hryvnias. Viktor Pashchenko, head of the NGO “Transcarpathian Institute for Political Studies,” asserts that despite the high-profile nature of the case, it will not have a significant impact on political processes in the country.
In brief:
- On May 14, the High Anti-Corruption Court imposed a pretrial detention measure on Andriy Yermak in the form of two months of detention or bail in the amount of 140 million hryvnias.
- On May 11, former Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak was served with a notice of suspicion of laundering funds obtained through illegal means.
- The SAPO and NABU jointly conducted the high-profile “Midas” investigation, which resulted in five individuals being charged and seven being served with notices of suspicion.
- During the investigation, investigators recorded over a thousand hours of footage detailing the connections between the individuals involved in the case and the funds spent on construction; the media dubbed these the “Mindich tapes.”
What is the former head of the President’s Office suspected of?
The SAPO and NABU continue to publish materials from the “Midas” case and issue new charges. On May 11, former Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak was charged under Part 3 of Article 209 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, specifically the legalization (laundering) of funds obtained illegally on an especially large scale.
Investigators from the SAPO and NABU have found evidence of Yermak’s involvement in the laundering of 460 million hryvnias spent on the construction of the “Dynasty” country residence.
Yermak himself considers the charges baseless and is reviewing the case materials with his lawyers, reports LB.ua.
On May 14, the High Anti-Corruption Court imposed a preventive measure on the former head of the Office of the President in the form of two months of pretrial detention with the possibility of posting bail in the amount of 140 million hryvnias. The SAPO had previously announced its intention to request bail in the amount of 180 million hryvnias.
Viktor Pashchenko, head of the public organization “Transcarpathian Institute for Political Studies,” spoke to journalists from “Black Sky” about the realities of judicial practice in Ukraine regarding officials:
“Today, the practice of opening a criminal case to generate media buzz is far more widespread than seeing a case through to the end. We see dozens of cases involving officials, and they drag on for years. This practice of opening a case and seeing how it goes is more the norm than the exception in law enforcement agencies.”.
Viktor Pashchenko believes that the greatest achievement of the trial against Yermak and other figures in the investigation is the creation of an atmosphere in society that no one is untouchable.
What is “Dynasty”
The “Dynasty” project was first mentioned in the “Midas” investigation, conducted jointly by the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Investigations and the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office of Ukraine. It is a complex of five estates, four of which are private homes, while the fifth was planned as a shared spa area. The complex spans nearly 8 hectares in the village of Kozin in the Kyiv region. According to estimates by NABU and the SAPO, the cost of a single home is around $2 million.
The concept for the suburban residence was developed in May 2020, and the active construction phase began in 2021. The land plot on which construction began is partially owned and leased by Bloom Development LLC, whose founders in 2018 included Oleksiy Chernyshov; however, after his appointment as head of the Kyiv Regional State Administration in 2019, he was forced to transfer his stake in the company to his wife.
In March 2020, Chernyshov became head of the Ministry of Community and Territorial Development, and in May 2020, the concept for the “Dynasty” private residences project was unveiled.
In June 2020, Chernyshov brought in Timur Mindich, a businessman and founder of the “Kvartal 95” studio, to help build “Carlson.” Around the same time, another participant, R2, was brought into the project.
Materials from the “Midas” investigation: who owns the codes
In early November 2025, NABU and the SAPO released part of the materials from the “Midas” investigation; at that time, five people were put on trial, and seven individuals implicated in the investigation were charged.
Among them were businessman Timur Mindich (“Carlson”), former advisor to the Minister of Energy Ihor Myronyuk (“Rocket”), Executive Director of Physical Protection and Security at JSC “NAEK “Energoatom” Dmytro Basov (“Tenor”), as well as four individuals—back-office “employees” involved in money laundering.
As part of the “Midas” special operation, investigators from the SAPO and NABU spent 15 months gathering information on the individuals involved in the case and carried out over a thousand wiretaps of their telephone conversations, which the media later dubbed the “Mindich tapes.” When publishing information about the case, investigators avoid using the suspects’ real names, but given their positions and the time period in question, it is possible to clearly identify those involved.
To conceal the costs of building the “Dynasty” complex, the participants used code names for the buildings: R1, R2, R3, and R4; in addition, they agreed to build a fifth residence, which they called R0. According to the investigation, R2 belongs to Andriy Yermak, R3 to businessman Timur Mindich (“Carlson”), and R4 to Oleksiy Chernyshov (“Che Guevara”); the owner of building R1 has not been named, reports the publication Glavkom.
Where did the funds for the construction of “Dynasty” come from?
Investigators from the SAPO and NABU describe two channels for the inflow of funds: non-cash payments, which were intended to appear conditionally transparent, and cash payments made with funds of unknown origin.
The non-cash method involved the creation of the “Sunny Beach” housing and construction cooperative, which acted as the project’s developer. The cooperative received funds through fictitious contracts for construction work and from the pharmaceutical industry. Furthermore, the cooperative’s financing of the construction amounted to only about 10% of the total cost of the work. The bulk of the construction funding, nearly $9 million, passed through a “money laundering scheme” organized by businessman Timur Mindich (“Carlson”). The “money laundering scheme” was used to launder funds obtained, in particular, through a corruption scheme at PJSC “NAEK ‘Energoatom’.”
Will the suspicion surrounding the former head of the President’s Office undermine trust in the current government?
The connection between former Office head Yermak and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy raises questions about the head of state’s own involvement in the scheme. This issue is being actively discussed both in Western media and in Russian propaganda.
For example, Russian media outlets are publishing articles with headlines such as “Zelenskyy Placed in the ‘Queue’ After Yermak” and “‘Breathe in the Spirit of Anchorage.’ How Yermak’s Arrest Will Affect Ukraine and Zelenskyy,” which share a common context and echo the general tone of Kremlin propaganda.
Viktor Pashchenko, head of the NGO “Transcarpathian Institute for Political Studies,” believes that there will be no significant impact on the political situation in Ukraine:
“It is too early to speak of a political impact on the situation in the country, because the reaction is still emotional, and an emotional reaction is short-lived. Of course, in the context of PR, there is talk of a blow to Zelenskyy. In reality, this is not a direct blow to the President, because he has his own authority, and people perceive him as a separate figure, and Yermak as a separate one.”
The political scientist estimates the impact on the sociological indicator at 5% to a maximum of 10%.
During a briefing for media representatives following Andriy Yermak’s arrest, NABU Director Semen Kryvonos stated that Volodymyr Zelenskyy did not appear and does not appear in the case files of the “Dynasty” case.
Viktor Pashchenko believes that using the topic of Yermak’s arrest in political propaganda and in hostile media is a completely normal process, and this topic will be actively disseminated, but propaganda and reality are entirely different things.
“Ukrainians have consolidated at this moment; there is a sentiment that these are our affairs. Therefore, any pressure, whether it comes from Russia, the U.S., or other countries, does not matter. Today’s Ukrainian political mindset immediately mobilizes to defend its own. They will certainly try to exert pressure, but there will be no result.”
Yulia Derdyuk
