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US seeks to confiscate $ 200 million from ex-Ukrainian PM Lazarenko for Ukraine

US Justice Department pursues civil forfeiture of over $200 million from Pavlo Lazarenko, Ukrainian PM in the 1996-1997, for Ukraine’s benefit.
byYuri Zoria
06/08/2024
2 minute read
us seeks confiscate $ 200 million from ex-ukrainian pm lazarenko ukraine ukraine's then-pm pavlo (left) president leonid kuchma mid-1990s 1519891076-8372
Ukraine’s then-PM Pavlo Lazarenko (left) and President Leonid Kuchma. Mid-1990s. Photo: Ukrinform.
US seeks to confiscate $ 200 million from ex-Ukrainian PM Lazarenko for Ukraine

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is pursuing the civil forfeiture of over $200 million from former Ukrainian Prime Minister Pavlo Lazarenko, according to Mary Butler, Chief of the DOJ’s International Unit of the Money Laundering and Asset Recovery. In an interview with the Armenian service of Voice of America, Butler reported progress in the long-running case.

Pavlo Lazarenko served as Ukraine’s Prime Minister in 1996-1997 under President Leonid Kuchma. Known as one of Ukraine’s most corrupt politicians, he embezzled approximately $200 million from the government. After fleeing Ukraine in 1999, Lazarenko sought refuge in the United States, where he was later convicted of extortion, money laundering, and wire fraud.

Butler emphasized that while Lazarenko was convicted in the US District Court for the Northern District of California in San Francisco and served about six years in prison, the scope of charges in that case was narrower than the allegations currently under the DOJ’s jurisdiction.

“The case is still not finished. But I’m glad to report that we’ve reached another decision that brings us closer to the possibility of obtaining a final decision on confiscation,” Butler stated, adding that Lazarenko may appeal as much as he wants, but the process is moving forward.

The case against Lazarenko has been ongoing for about 20 years, involving funds frozen in various countries. Lazarenko was arrested in the US in February 1999, received a final verdict in the US in 2009, being found guilty of laundering $22.85 million, and sentenced to about 8 years in prison. He was released in 2012.

In a parallel case in Switzerland, Lazarenko received a 1.5-year suspended sentence and, similar to the US verdict, faced asset confiscation and fines. Ukraine has already received $6.5 million from Switzerland from the funds stolen by Lazarenko.

Butler also mentioned other cases handled by the US Department of Justice, including charges against individuals associated with Serhii Kurchenko, a sanctioned former ally of fugitive ex-president Viktor Yanukovych. Kurchenko was implicated in a scheme to circumvent US sanctions, engaging in business with US persons and securing about $330 million.

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