VZCZCXRO9275
PP RUEHDBU RUEHIK RUEHLN RUEHPOD RUEHSK RUEHSL RUEHVK RUEHYG
DE RUEHKV #1259/01 2101331
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 291331Z JUL 09
FM AMEMBASSY KYIV
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 8172
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHZG/NATO EU COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KYIV 001259 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958:  N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PGOV UP
SUBJECT:  SPECULATION SOARS WITH ARREST OF GONGADZE MURDER SUSPECT 
 
Summary 
------- 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  The recent arrest of former police general Oleksiy 
Pukach, a key suspect in the 2000 murder of investigative journalist 
Georgiy Gongadze, has many hoping that he will reveal who ordered 
this high-profile murder.  Gongadze's widow told the press that 
senior officials from the Kuchma administration, including the 
former president himself, should be worried.   However, the lawyer 
for Gongadze's widow told us that Pukach would likely mislead 
investigators to save himself and protect others involved in the 
murder.  Although the lawyer believes the timing of the arrest was 
not connected to the upcoming presidential campaign, she was 
concerned that political pressure to rush Pukach to trial before the 
presidential election could result in a botched trial.  End Summary. 
 
 
Key Suspect Arrested 
-------------------- 
 
¶2.  (U) On July 21, authorities detained former police general 
Oleksiy Pukach, a key suspect in the 2000 murder and decapitation of 
journalist Georgiy Gongadze, who had earned the enmity of 
then-President Kuchma.  Pukach, who had been in hiding since 2004, 
was captured in a village in Zhytomyr Oblast in a joint operation by 
the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and Prosecutor General's 
Office (PGO).  Three former police officers were convicted in 2008 
for their involvement in the murder but many believe that Pukach 
organized Gongadze's abduction and strangled him in 2000.  Although 
he probably did not order the murder, observers believe Pukach had 
firsthand knowledge of who did.  While senior Kuchma era officials 
all deny involvement, observers and the media speculate that Pukach 
could implicate Kuchma or Rada Speaker Lytvyn, among others. 
 
¶3.  (U) Pukach's arrest in Ukraine, after years of being in easy 
reach of law enforcement authorities, came as a surprise.  A video 
of his arrest posted on the internet appears to show him admitting 
involvement in the crime.  Following the arrest, Deputy head of the 
SBU Vasyl Hrytsak told reporters that that Pukach was cooperating in 
the investigation and that he knew the location of Gongadze's 
missing head.  On July 28, the media reported that investigators, 
acting on information from Pukach, believe they have found parts of 
Gongadze's skull. 
 
Widow says Kuchma Should be Worried 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶4.  (U)  Gongadze's widow Myroslava told the media that the arrest 
was significant and that Kuchma and other senior officials during 
his administration - including Lytvyn - should be worried.  First 
Vice Prime Minister Turchinov called on law enforcement to ensure 
Pukach's safety while in detention saying that some high ranking 
officials may fear what he could tell investigators.  President 
Yushchenko's spokesperson told reporters that Yushchenko ordered the 
PGO to report to him daily on the investigation and explain how 
Pukach managed to remain in hiding in Ukraine since 2004.  Prime 
Minister Tymoshenko expressed surprise that it took so long for law 
enforcement to arrest Pukach.  She stated that the investigation has 
to be completed regardless of how it may impact the presidential 
election. 
 
Widow's Lawyer: Timing of Arrest Coincidence 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU)   Valentyna Telychenko, the legal representative for 
Gongadze's widow Myroslava Gongadze, told Emboff that she believed 
the timing of the arrest was not connected with the upcoming 
presidential campaign.  She attributed Pukach's arrest to good 
investigatory work done by working level SBU officers, who 
disregarded unofficial but well understood pressure from higher 
levels to leave the crime unsolved.   While crediting SBU head 
Nalyvaichenko for acting on the leads developed by SBU 
investigators, she criticized the PGO for not doing its part to 
investigate the case.  She believes that former colleagues of Pukach 
at the Ministry of Interior knew of his whereabouts while he was in 
hiding.   She expressed frustration that despite President 
Yushchenko's campaign promise in 2004 to fully investigate the 
murder, the current Government had not done enough to identify those 
who ordered the killing.  However, with the arrest of Pukach, she 
expects President Yushchenko to push for a speedy trial and 
conviction before the January 2010 presidential election. 
 
Pukach will Mislead Investigators 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Telychenko expects that Pukach, with many years of police 
experience, will mislead investigators.  She believes he has already 
provided contradictory stories implicating senior officials from the 
Kuchma era, including former Interior Minister Kravchenko, who are 
now dead.  (Investigators ruled Kravchenko's death in 2005, although 
it resulted from two shots to the head, as a suicide.)  Telychenko 
 
KYIV 00001259  002 OF 002 
 
 
explained that Pukach's videotaped admission of involvement in the 
crime during his arrest would not be admissible in court. 
Telychenko is concerned that Pukach may succeed in avoiding a 
conviction, especially if the PGO bungles its case due to 
incompetence or if it is forced to rush its case because of 
political pressure.   She noted that Pukach's testimony could also 
lead to a judicial review of the 2008 conviction of the three police 
officers for their role in the killing.  According to Telychenko, if 
Pukach's testimony contradicts the prosecution's case against the 
three police officers, their convictions could be overturned. 
 
 
Lytvyn Calls for Objective Investigation 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶7.   (SBU)  Rada Speaker Volodymyr Lytvyn, who was chief of Kuchma's 
Presidential Secretariat when Gongadze was murdered, has been the 
subject of speculation following Pukach's arrest.  Lytvyn is alleged 
to have had knowledge of plans to silence Gongadze.  Lytvyn, who has 
denied any involvement, called for an objective investigation and 
told reporters that he hopes the truth would be revealed -- but not 
the truth for political interests.  Telychenko believes that Pukach 
has information about senior officials who ordered the murder but 
she doubts that he would reveal incriminating evidence.  Pukach is 
in danger of being killed for what he knows about the murder, she 
noted.  He might also be targeted by forces hoping to destabilize 
Ukraine during a highly charged election year, she speculated. 
 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  It will be a test for Ukraine's legal system to keep 
political considerations from interfering with a fair and thorough 
trial of Pukach.  However, if the Government's record on this case 
is any indication, then Telychenko has reason to be concerned about 
the possibility of a botched trial. 
 
PETTIT