Over the weekend, Ihor Kolomoisky, one of Ukraine’s top five richest citizens with just under $1.7 billion, was arrested by Ukraine authorities on multiple fraud and money laundering charges. The New York Times’ coverage of the arrest highlighted Kolomoisky’s hand in bringing now-President Volodymyr Zelensky to power. The Times wrote, “His [Kolomoisky’s] business interests have included oil and banking, and he was once considered a patron of Mr. Zelensky, a former comedian whose popular shows were broadcast on Mr. Kolomoisky’s television channel before he successfully ran for the presidency.” Although Western mainstream media has presented Zelensky as getting “tough” on long-standing corruption, the timing is interesting as Zelensky just announced the replacement of his own defense minister the same weekend as Kolomoisky’s arrest. The Daily Signal reported, “Besides being connected through the Burisma energy giant, Hunter Biden did business with Igor Kolomoisky’s bank.”
