Anti-corruption activist Shabunin is being sent to Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi to hang anti-drone nets: he considers this pressure from “Zelensky’s security forces”

Date: 22 December 2025
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Vitaliy Shabunin, head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center NGO (AntAC) and a soldier, announced on Facebook that he is being deployed to Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi to set up anti-drone nets. According to the anti-corruption activist, several other soldiers will accompany him, as leaving him alone in a 10-kilometer zone of operation “would be suspicious.”

A man wearing glasses and an olive-green t-shirt poses with his hand near his chin in a thoughtful gesture against a dark background. The portrait-style photograph is lit from one side, creating dramatic contrast and shadows. Vitaliy Shabunin

Shabunin noted that among the soldiers performing this task, one is missing fingers, another has serious hearing impairments, two others cannot use ladders due to injuries, and one is unable to shoot due to partial vision loss. All these soldiers have decisions of military medical commissions, so Vitaliy doubts the legality of such an order.

The anti-corruption activist is convinced that the command of the 43rd Separate Mechanized Brigade is acting “on the instructions of Zelenskyy’s security officials,” making his defense in court impossible. Thus, this deprives him of the opportunity to hold the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) and the Prosecutor General’s Office accountable for the leak of his private photo and to defend himself against illegal criminal prosecution, suspicion of which he was served in July of this year.

He also stated that his brigade’s command, under pressure from the SBI, also falsified documents to “slap” him for unauthorized abandonment of a military unit (AWOL) for a single day, he spent in court regarding a case against him.

“At some point, it became obvious that the unit commanders are executing the instructions of the SBI agents – to do everything possible to ensure I am not present at court hearings in Kyiv,” explains the head of the AntAC.

According to him, he warned the command in writing that he had documented its illegal cooperation with the SBI and warned that he “would be forced to respond.”

According to Shabunin, due to these actions, he will be unable to attend a series of important court hearings. 

“In the coming weeks, I was due to have a series of extremely important court hearings, which it is obviously impossible to reach from Kupiansk-Vuzlovyi. This is how the State Bureau of Investigation and the Prosecutor General’s Office, through the hands of obedient commanders of the 43rd Separate Mechanized Brigade, deprived me of the right to defend myself against illegal persecution,” the anti-corruption activist stated.

Previously, Dzerkalo Tyzhnia news outlet reported that President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy is personally overseeing the progress of Shabunin’s case.

You may also want to read: Systemic pressure on the anti-corruption ecosystem: challenges facing NABU, activists, and the media in 2025

Earlier, the Pechersk Court granted the motion to recuse Judge Konstantinova in the case of activist Vitaliy Shabunin.

Prior to this, the defense of Vitaliy Shabunin filed a motion for the recusal of judge Kristina Konstantinova during a preparatory hearing in the case regarding the head of the board of the NGO “Anti-Corruption Action Center” and his former commander, Lieutenant Colonel Viktor Yushko.
 
To provide background, the Pechersk District Court of Kyiv imposed a pre-trial restriction on the head of the Anti-Corruption Action Center’s board, Vitaliy Shabunin, in the form of a personal obligation until August 20.
 
The SBI issued a notice of suspicion to Shabunin for “evasion of military service” and “fraud” (under Part 4 of Art. 409 and Part 2 of Art. 190 of the Criminal Code).
 
Earlier, concurrent searches took place at Vitaliy’s place of service east of Chuhuiv and in Kyiv, at the house where his family currently resides.
 
The SBI’s accusations relate to an episode and period from September 2022 to February 2023. At that time, while his Territorial Defense (TrO) unit was stationed in Sukholuchchia, the Kyiv Oblast, Vitaliy was seconded to the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP).
 
During his secondment to the NACP, Vitaliy was engaged in promoting anti-corruption changes and reforms, including in the defense sector. In particular, he worked on the restoration of electronic asset declarations, as well as planning and developing solutions to reduce abuse in defense procurement. These solutions were later adopted at the legislative level following the infamous “eggs for 17 hryvnias” scandal.
 
The SBI also served a notice of suspicion to Shabunin’s former commander, Viktor Yushko, for the allegedly illegal secondment of Vitaliy to the NACP.
 
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