Zelenskyy fires Prosecutor General Kostin

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has dismissed Andriy Kostin from the position of General Prosecutor, according to the corresponding decree published on the website of the President's Office, dated October 31.

Earlier, on Tuesday, the Verkhovna Rada voted to dismiss the Prosecutor General, with 255 lawmakers voting in favor.

Kostin announced his resignation following the conclusions of the National Security and Defense Council meeting on abuses in the medical and social expertise system, which took place on October 22. At that time, President Zelenskyy stated that the then-General Prosecutor should bear "political responsibility" for the situation in the prosecutor's offices.

Previously, on October 16, journalist Yuriy Butusov published an investigation revealing that almost all prosecutors in Khmelnytskyi Oblast were found to be second-degree disabled, according to a decision by the chief doctor of the Medical and Social Expertise Commission (MSEC), Tetiana Krupa, who was previously arrested on suspicion of illegal enrichment.

On October 17, Kostin dismissed the head of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast Prosecutor's Office. Subsequently, seven regional prosecutor's office chiefs and one special prosecutor submitted resignation letters—all of whom had received enhanced pensions based on court decisions.

Kostin assumed the position of Prosecutor General on July 28, 2022. His predecessor, Irina Venediktova, was appointed as the Ambassador to Switzerland after her dismissal.

It is currently unknown who will be the next Prosecutor General.