The Main "Fixer": Who Was Andriy Portnov

Author

Artur Gmyria

In Madrid, on May 21, Andriy Portnov, a former high-ranking official of fugitive President Yanukovych's Administration and a "grey cardinal" of the judicial system, was shot dead. decided to recall what Portnov did in Ukraine and why he was "awarded" with sanctions from the USA and placed on the EU's blacklist.

Who Was Andriy Portnov

Andriy Portnov was born in the Luhansk region. His first job in Kyiv, in 1997, was at the State Commission on Securities and Stock Market (SCSSM). A lawyer by profession, in 2001 he earned a Candidate of Economic Sciences degree, defending a dissertation on foreign investments. He opened his own law firm in the capital and collaborated with financial and industrial structures. In 2003, he returned to the SCSSM, but left the position after lawyer Oksana Sakhnatska accused him of threats. A case was opened against Portnov, which he called fabricated and was ultimately proven innocent in court. However, in 2008, the investigation was resumed.

Portnov actively engaged in political activity in the mid-2000s. In 2005, he defended the interests of Oleksandr Zinchenko, former general director of the "Inter" TV channel, who accused Poroshenko of corruption. Portnov also tried to challenge Poroshenko's right to combine the mandate of a people's deputy and the position of Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC). In 2006 and 2007, Portnov was elected a people's deputy from the "Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc", later heading the faction's legal service.

In 2008, Tymoshenko appointed him acting head of the State Property Fund, but another case was opened against him for an attempt at illegal privatization of the Odesa Port Plant and pressure on judges. Portnov himself and Tymoshenko stated that it was pressure from President Yushchenko.

Portnov and Tymoshenko

In 2009, he defended his doctoral dissertation, became a professor at Kyiv National University (KNU), and worked on gas agreements with Russia, which later became the basis for Tymoshenko's imprisonment. It was reported that Portnov and Medvedchuk personally facilitated the signing of the agreements.

"I have the honor to exchange views with Viktor Medvedchuk," Portnov said in a 2008 interview. "Viktor Volodymyrovych is a person I respect. Whether anyone likes it or not, Medvedchuk's role in the development of the state is, undoubtedly, very significant."

In the 2010 presidential elections, Portnov was the deputy head of Tymoshenko's campaign headquarters. And shortly after Yanukovych's victory, to the surprise of many, he moved to work in the Presidential Administration.

How Portnov Became the "Grey Cardinal" in Yanukovych's Administration

At the Presidential Administration, Andriy Portnov oversaw judicial reform and participated in the preparation of the new Criminal Code. He was constantly accused of pressuring the judicial system. The appointment of the defector caused a mixed reaction among deputies of the "Party of Regions". Some of them openly expressed their indignation regarding such a personnel decision.

However, it was Andriy Portnov who became one of the main driving forces in the case against his "former" ally. The Pechersky District Court of Kyiv, on October 11, 2011, sentenced Yulia Tymoshenko to seven years in prison for "exceeding her authority during the signing of gas agreements" with Russia in 2009 and causing damages to the state amounting to over 1.5 billion UAH. It's worth remembering that Portnov was one of the main lawyers of the agreement and promoted it.

Portnov and Yanukovych during a meeting with the opposition

At that time, his talent for finding "suitable" judges clearly manifested itself. Tymoshenko herself ironically noted that for high-profile cases, judges of the Pechersky Court – Kireyev and Vovk – were always chosen, with the latter's surname often being mentioned together with Portnov's.

How Portnov Managed Ukrainian Courts

According to an "Ukrayinska Pravda" investigation from 2009, even while being a deputy from the BYuT, Andriy Portnov actively influenced the judicial system. For example, Oleg Bachun, a judge of the Kyiv District Administrative Court (KDAC), who had always made decisions in favor of Tymoshenko, fell out of favor. This happened immediately after Bachun suddenly made a decision that made the privatization of the Odesa Port Plant impossible.

Portnov not only initiated a parliamentary investigation into Bachun, providing the committee with compromising materials on the judge (flight records, photos of his property), but also organized a wide campaign to discredit the judge. This included the dissemination of a 16-page color brochure with compromising information among all judges of Ukraine's administrative courts and the publication of an advertisement in the legal press on behalf of his official assistant, lawyer Andriy Martynyuk, offering a reward for information about Bachun.

Through his close associate, People's Deputy Valeriy Pysarenko, Portnov initiated an appeal to the Prosecutor General's Office regarding the legality of Bachun's flights. This appeal reached Deputy Prosecutor General Renat Kuzmin, who was also close to Portnov, which ensured a swift and large-scale investigation involving the border, tax, and aviation services. In addition, Portnov involved Viktor Medvedchuk, a member of the High Council of Justice, who quickly issued a negative "expert opinion" regarding Judge Bachun's decisions based on a complaint from the Anti-Raider Union.

This case demonstrated that Andriy Portnov had very extensive connections that allowed him to influence any judge. However, he usually acted much simpler: bribery was used. The well-known "Vovk tapes," featuring former KDAC head Judge Pavlo Vovk and Andriy Portnov, show how the latter effectively managed the court's work behind the scenes.

Escape and Return to Ukraine

At the height of the Revolution of Dignity, Andriy Portnov was promoted to first deputy head of the Presidential Administration. During this period, he, along with Olena Lukash and NSDC Secretary Andriy Klyuyev, participated in negotiations with the opposition.

He was credited with authoring the so-called dictatorial laws, adopted on January 16. But Portnov claimed he was the author of only one of them — the law on road traffic and video recording of violations. He also prepared a draft law that would allow blocking accounts of organizations the authorities considered "extremist." On February 19, on the eve of the mass killings on the Maidan, Portnov publicly called on "radicals" to surrender their weapons to avoid severe punishment.

After the Maidan shootings, he left Ukraine. He first went to Moscow and then settled in Vienna. In Ukraine, a number of cases were opened against him — on suspicion of embezzlement, pressure on courts, even treason, but no evidence was collected, and Portnov never received the status of a suspect. In 2018, Portnov gained control over the NewsOne TV channel. In 2019, the court obliged the Prosecutor General's Office to decide on his cases, and NABU closed one of them due to the repeal of the relevant article of the Criminal Code.

How Portnov Returned and Influenced the President's Office

Andriy Smirnov, former deputy head of President Andriy Yermak's office, who was in charge of the law enforcement system (now he is under detantion), pictured with Andriy Portnov

After a long exile, on May 19, 2019, Andriy Portnov returned to Kyiv and was immediately provided with police protection. Portnov publicly stated that his main goal was to bring criminal charges against Petro Poroshenko.

Poroshenko's lawyers later complained that they learned about subpoenas for questioning at the State Bureau of Investigation from Portnov's publications on social networks. His statements about crimes were registered instantly, while others could wait for days.

After his return, Portnov met with the future head of the President's Office, Andriy Bohdan, and the head of the KDAC, Pavlo Vovk, which quickly created an image of a person close to the new president's team. This connection was reinforced by the fact that Bohdan, who headed the President's Office, was once Portnov's assistant in parliament and his long-time friend.

Although Bohdan left Zelensky's team in February 2020, and Portnov's influence should have decreased, control over the judicial and law enforcement systems in the President's Office remained with Andriy Smyrnov and Oleh Tatarov – individuals who were not strangers to Portnov.

Smyrnov was the lawyer of Portnov's long-time associate Olena Lukash and also published joint photos with Portnov. Tatarov was Portnov's lawyer during his interrogations after his return to Ukraine.

The Anti-Corruption Action Center claims that Tatarov and Portnov began collaborating in 2011, when the former held the position of deputy head of the Main Investigation Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Tatarov was included in several working groups with Portnov, including the analysis of compliance with freedom of speech legislation and the protection of journalists' rights, as well as the development of a draft Criminal Procedure Code.

After Yanukovych's escape and his dismissal from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Oleh Tatarov began his legal practice and repeatedly represented Portnov's interests. Such cases included criminal proceedings related to Viktor Yanukovych's seizure of power and state treason in connection with aiding the Russian Federation in the seizure of Crimea. Prosecutor Oleksandr Bozhko, who investigated one such case, repeatedly reported threats from Portnov and Tatarov.

Even after Tatarov's appointment as Deputy Head of the President's Office, he continued to influence cases: for example, SAP prosecutors made several attempts to close the criminal proceedings regarding "Rotterdam+" after Tatarov joined the President's Office. Portnov publicly supported Tatarov in his confrontation with NABU.

Of course, Volodymyr Zelensky's team, since the 2019 elections, denied any ties with Portnov or other representatives of Yanukovych's team, including Olena Lukash. However, experts note that the enormous influence of the now-deceased Portnov on Ukrainian courts is still felt, as the list of "his judges" sometimes numbered in the dozens.