Oleksandr Hovorushchak, a high-ranking official in Ukraine’s State Bureau of Investigation (SBI), has filed a lawsuit against Slidstvo.Info journalists following their investigation into his family’s property worth an estimated 35 million hryvnias ($842,357).
The Slidstvo.Info investigation revealed that the family of Hovorushchak, who is the head of the first department of the Department for Pre-trial Investigation of Criminal Offenses Committed by Law Enforcement Officers and Judges of the Main Investigation Department of the State Bureau of Investigation and former prosecutor, lives in a recently acquired house in a Kyiv suburb valued at approximately 14.5 million hryvnias ($348,977). His wife, also an SBI employee, declared ownership of land and a house worth 4.5 million hryvnias ($108,303) in 2023. However, journalists found that the market value of this property is likely three times higher than the declared amount. Additionally, Hovorushchak’s in-laws have acquired properties in Kyiv and its suburbs with a combined value of up to 20 million hryvnias ($481,347) in recent years.
Following the publication of these findings, Hovorushchak filed a lawsuit against Slidstvo.Info and the author of the article, Yana Korniychuk, seeking to protect his honor, dignity, and business reputation. In his complaint, Hovorushchak demands that Slidstvo.Info retract and remove all published information related to him and his family.
Yana Korniychuk
“Disregarding the principles, not verifying the facts, using unverified sources without any evidence or confirmation, Slidstvo.Info deliberately created an impression in society of my involvement in unacceptable, including corrupt, actions incompatible with the status of a law enforcement officer and the head of a pre-trial investigation body,” Hovorushchak stated in his complaint. He believes this violates his rights to respect for dignity, honor, and business reputation.
The SBI official, who investigates crimes committed by law enforcement officers and judges, is seeking 40,000 hryvnias ($963) in moral damages from both Slidstvo.Info and Korniychuk.
“Thanks to this lawsuit and the documents attached to it, we were able to establish many important details that Hovorushchak and his family refused to discuss when our journalists contacted them for comment during the preparation of the material,” said Anna Babinets, the founder and editor at Slidstvo.Info.
Among other details, Hovorushchak’s wife, also an SBI official, purchased a land plot in a Kyiv suburb in 2023 for 3 million hryvnias ($72,202). Two months later, a house was commissioned on this plot, with construction costs amounting to 1.45 million hryvnias ($34,898). In total, the declared expenses were nearly 4.5 million hryvnias ($108,303), as stated in the official’s declaration. However, Slidstvo.Info has evidence that the plot was sold with an already constructed house, and the market value of the property could be as high as 14.5 million hryvnias ($348,977). Thus, the total value declared by the official is three times lower than the market price of a similar ready-made house listed on real estate websites.
In the lawsuit, Hovorushchak confirmed that he lives with his family in the suburban house mentioned, referring to it as “our homestead” and “our place of residence.” This is significant because Hovorushchak continues to use a service apartment provided to him by the Prosecutor General’s Office, which still considers him a resident of that apartment and has not requested its return.
Hovorushchak accuses the journalists of disclosing information about his in-laws, but mentions of them are present in the declarations of Hovorushchak and his wife. His father-in-law regularly gave monetary gifts to his daughter, and his mother-in-law rented a parking space to the family of SBI officials.
The lawsuit also states that Oleksandr Hovorushchak began working at the SBI on September 18, 2020, and was appointed head of the department of the SBI’s Main Investigative Directorate on October 28, 2020.
Additionally, Hovorushchak lists the income of his family and close relatives in the lawsuit. Specifically, he and his wife have earned a combined income of over 17 million hryvnias ($409,145) during their married life, which he claims fully justifies their acquired property.
“Public officials must be prepared for journalists to be more attentive to verifying declarations of assets and comparing declared data with actual data available in the public domain. This is especially true for officials who have the authority to investigate official or anti-corruption crimes. This is the price that public figures must pay for holding high offices. I would like to note that the journalists used legal methods of collecting information and verified the information that the official personally submitted. The material raises the question of the integrity of the official, who is obliged by his official duties to ensure the integrity of others,” said Oksana Maksymeniuk, a media lawyer and head of the legal department of the NGO Regional Press Development Institute.
