Court Gives Green Light For Ukrainian Ex-President To Take Lie-Detector Test

A Kyiv court has granted permission for authorities to administer a polygraph test to former President Petro Poroshenko in a tax evasion case, a spokeswoman for the State Bureau for Investigations (DBR) told Interfax on August 13.

Angelika Ivanova said the Kyiv Pechersk District Court’s decision was applicable only with Poroshenko's consent.

The former president told reporters on August 12 that he was ready to answer questions during a polygraph, but only in the studio of the Pryamiy (Direct) television channel.

During his unsuccessful re-election bid earlier this year, Poroshenko enjoyed enormous coverage on Pryamiy and local media have reported that he is the ultimate owner of the channel.

"I do not trust the DBR and its leadership," Poroshenko said. "I do not believe that investigators are objective and unbiased…I am ready to pass a polygraph test in the Pryamiy channel's live broadcast."

In the same briefing on August 12, Poroshenko accused a former official in ex-President Viktor Yanukovych's administration of trying to take over Pryamiy.

However, he denied ownership of the channel, saying "I do not have any property relations or ownership relations with Pryamiy TV."

The DBR has twice questioned Poroshenko as a witness in recent weeks over the sale of Pryamiy and alleged tax evasion during the transaction.

Volodymyr Makeyenko, a former lawmaker from the pro-Russia Party of Regions, is officially listed as the TV channel's owner. He was also the head of the Kyiv city state administration for just over a month toward the end of Yanukovych's truncated presidency in early 2014.

A billionaire confectioner, Poroshenko and his party successfully ran on a pro-European, anti-Russia ticket in the July parliamentary elections, winning 25 seats.

Based on reporting by Interfax