Ukraine's Top Prosecutor 'Escapes Assassination'

Ukrainian Prosecutor-General Viktor Shokin (file photo)

Ukrainian authorities have opened a criminal investigation into an alleged sniper attack on Prosecutor-General Viktor Shokin.

Deputy Prosecutor-General Anatoliy Matios said an unknown assailant fired three rounds at a window in Shokin’s office late on November 2 as he held a meeting with several coworkers.

Only bulletproof windows allowed Shokin to escape, Matios said.

Shokin, who was appointed by President Petro Poroshenko in February, has been under pressure to resign amid criticism he has blocked efforts to fight corruption.

He has faced accusations of stalling high-profile corruption cases against allies of former President Viktor Yanukovych, who was toppled by pro-European protests in February 2014.

In September, U.S. ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt publicly blamed "corrupt actors" within the Prosecutor-General’s Office for obstructing efforts to combat corruption and shielding its own employees from graft investigations.

Based on reporting by AP, Bloomberg.com, UNIAN, and Interfax