Category: Fox News
Former business associate of Zelenskyy allegedly nabbed in corruption investigation of Ukrainian energy company
A large-scale criminal investigation into alleged corruption among officials of a Ukrainian state-run energy company reportedly pointed to a former business associate of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to a source familiar with the probe.
Seven people were charged in the alleged $100 million kickback scheme, including Energoatom, a nuclear energy agency, according to Ukrainian officials.
Ukraine is under pressure to stamp out corruption as a part of its bid to join the European Union.
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine said that five of the seven were arrested, but none were named publicly. NABU officials said they conducted 70 searches over 15 months of the investigation.
A Reuters report cited a source familiar with the matter that said Timur Mindich was among those charged. Mindich and Zelenskyy are longtime friends and business associates.
NABU said only that two of those charged were “a businessman who is the head of the criminal organization” and “a former adviser to the Minister of Energy.”
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said an urgent audit of Energoatom would be conducted after the agency’s supervisory board was dismissed.
“We expect the audit results as soon as possible,” Svyrydenko wrote on Telegram. “The data will be handed over to law enforcement and anti-corruption bodies.”
Reuters said Mindich did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Ukraine is under pressure to stamp out corruption as a part of its bid to join the European Union.
On Monday, Zelenskyy said in a video address that the integrity of the energy agency is a priority.
“Everyone who has built corrupt schemes must face a clear procedural response,” the president said. “There must be convictions. And government officials must work together with NABU and law enforcement bodies — and do it in a way that delivers real results.”
RELATED: White House hits Russia with massive sanctions, demands ‘immediate ceasefire’ in Ukraine
Critics of the ongoing U.S. support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion have pointed to accusations of corruption to bolster their calls to end military aid to the beleaguered nation.
The allegations of corruption in the energy sector would enrage many Ukrainians who are suffering widespread electricity blackouts as the bitter winter edges closer. Russian missile and drone attacks on the energy grid have also worsened the situation.
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Supreme Court rules in favor of Trump administration to extend pause in SNAP funding
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Trump administration’s request to extend the pause of an order to fully fund food aid benefits for a few days.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson previously granted the emergency pause on an order from U.S. District Judge John McConnell from Rhode Island for the government to fully fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Many on the left excoriated her for what they perceived as a pro-Trump order.
‘The only way to end this crisis — which the executive is adamant to end — is for Congress to reopen the government.’
Solicitor General John Sauer argued in the emergency appeal on behalf of the government.
“The core power of Congress is that of the purse, while the executive is tasked with allocating limited resources across competing priorities,” he said.
“But here, the court below took the current shutdown as effective license to declare a federal bankruptcy and appoint itself the trustee,” Sauer contined, “charged with picking winners and losers among those seeking some part of the limited pool of remaining federal funds.”
While the Trump administration had agreed to partially fund the program by about 65%, McConnell’s order called the government to use a separate pool of funding to fully support the program.
“The only way to end this crisis — which the executive is adamant to end — is for Congress to reopen the government,” Sauer said.
That effort to end the government shutdown appeared to be successful after Democrats caved to Republicans demands.
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi thanked the court for the ruling.
“Our @TheJusticeDept attorneys just secured a further administrative stay through Thursday at midnight at the Supreme Court to prevent further judicial upheaval for the SNAP and Child Nutrition programs,” she wrote. “Thank you to the Court for allowing Congress to continue its swift progress to end the shutdown WITHOUT last-ditch disruption from lower courts. We will continue fighting and winning to protect President Trump’s agenda from meritless judicial activism.”
RELATED: Woman goes viral after admitting to being on SNAP benefits for 3 decades
Critics of the SNAP program point to examples on social media of recipients proudly admitting to abusing the program. In on case, a woman said she had been on SNAP for nearly three decades, though that report did not indicate whether she was suffering from disabilities.
“The first thing I did was grab my phone and call, and when I heard ‘zero dollars,’ my chest went into my throat!” said Maggie Aragon of New Mexico to KOAT-TV. “I have depended on those benefits since the 1990s, and it’s detrimental to my life if I don’t get them.”
About 42 million people rely on SNAP benefits.
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Former Browns executive Paul DePodesta reflects on polarizing Deshaun Watson trade: ‘We all own that’
After leaving the Cleveland Browns for an executive role with the Colorado Rockies, Paul DePodesta remembered the Deshaun Watson trade as an “organizational decision.”
CFP committee explains keeping Indiana at No. 2 after close call vs Penn State in latest rankings
The latest College Football Playoff rankings kept the top five unchanged with Ohio State leading, but newcomers USF and Cincinnati enter the fold.
Antonio Brown pleads not guilty to Miami attempted murder charge
Former NFL wide receiver Antonio Brown pleaded not guilty to attempted murder charges from a May Miami shooting, with his lawyer claiming self-defense.
