Lychakivsky District Court of Lviv has decided to change the measure of restraint for MP Viktor Medvedchuk (Opposition Platform - For Life faction), suspected of high treason.

"Today, the investigator judge of Lychakivsky District Court of Lviv sustained the petition of the investigator for especially important cases of the Main Investigation Department of the State Bureau of Investigations, which was approved by the Prosecutor General, and chose a measure of restraint in the form of detention for MP of Ukraine Medvedchuk Viktor Volodymyrovych," the court's press service said on Facebook.

The court ruling does not provide for an alternative in the form of bail.

It is noted that the consideration was carried out via videoconference.

As reported, on May 11, 2021, Medvedchuk was notified of suspicion of treason and attempted plunder of national resources in Russian-occupied Crimea.

According to Prosecutor General Iryna Venediktova, the suspicion concerns three episodes of illegal activity and cooperation with the aggressor country. According to the investigation, in 2015 Medvedchuk entered into a preliminary agreement with a Russian government official to extract minerals on the Black Sea shelf (a marine economic zone of Ukraine temporarily occupied by Russia).

Another episode of criminal proceedings concerns the transfer of information containing state secrets to the special services of Russia. The third episode of illegal activity is carrying out subversive activities against Ukraine, in particular in the context of the development of the anti-Ukrainian project Luch.

The pretrial investigation in this criminal proceeding has been completed. According to this episode, a measure of restraint in the form of personal obligations was chosen against Medvedchuk until December 31, 2021.

On October 8, 2021, the Prosecutor General's Office presented Medvedchuk with a new suspicion of high treason and assistance to the activities of a terrorist organization in connection with his involvement in the illegal supply of coal from the occupied territory in late 2014, early 2015.

As part of the new suspicion filed, the prosecutor's office asked the court to choose a preventive measure for Medvedchuk in the form of arrest with an alternative bail of UAH 1 billion. The court chose a preventive measure in the form of round-the-clock house arrest. This decision was appealed to the court of appeal. The Court of Appeal upheld the measure of restraint in the form of house arrest. Subsequently, the court of first instance extended Medvedchuk's preventive measure in the form of round-the-clock house arrest.

On February 27, Advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko said that Medvedchuk, a suspect in the case of coal supplies from the occupied Donbas, had escaped from house arrest.

On April 12, Medvedchuk was detained while trying to illegally cross the Ukrainian state border.