Yanukovych-era justice minister Lavrynovych arrested for two months

Kyiv's Pechersky District Court has ruled to select the measure of restraint for former Ukrainian Justice Minister Oleksandr Lavrynovych in the form of detention for 60 days, Espresso.tv reports.

It is noted that the court decision can be appealed within 5 days.

Thus, the petition of the Prosecutor General's Office was satisfied. Prosecutors think there is a risk that Lavrynovych may hide and influence another person involved in the case - ex-Deputy Minister of Justice Volodymyr Bohatyr, and influence public opinion with the aim of misinformation.

According to the court's decision, Lavrynovych should be taken into custody right in the courtroom, so he was asked not to leave the premises.

Next to Lavrynovych there are people's deputies from the Opposition Bloc Oleksandr Vilkul and Vadym Novinsky.

As previously reported, on September 6 the Prosecutor General's Office reported suspicion under part 1 of Art. 109 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine to ex-President Viktor Yanukovych and ex-Minister of Justice Oleksandr Lavrynovych for committing seizure of state power jointly with other persons. It is about changing the form of state government in Ukraine from the parliamentary-presidential to the presidential-parliamentary without agreement with the Verkhovna Rada.

In turn, Lavrynovych said that the changes to the Constitution were not a violation, but the performance of functional duties.

Lavrynovych's interests are represented by Yevhen Solodko, who also defends the accused of separatism ex-head of the Party of Regions Oleksandr Yefremov.

Since September 1, Lavrynovych has been a suspect in the criminal proceedings on the constitutional coup in Ukraine in 2010.