“Olena Zelenska left Ukraine last night in an armored capsule of a cash-in-transit van, accompanied by escort vehicles. Along with her, 66 million euros in cash, gold bars, and precious stones were transported,” – claims a source at the British Embassy in Kyiv,” – states the circulated fake news.
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However, this news is fabricated. The origins of the fake news lead to an anonymous “Telegram” channel “Condottiero”, whose description states it is managed by a veteran of the Russian mercenary group “Wagner.”
Later, this story was spread on May 17 on a pro-Russian “X” platform account, which describes itself as a “parody” profile and openly declares its intention to “block fact-checkers.”
Appeared publicly multiple times
On May 18, O. Zelenska and her husband honored the memory of the victims of the Crimean Tatar genocide. On May 19, the Zelenskiy couple attended the opening of Ivan Marchuk’s exhibition. On May 20, the First Lady of Ukraine, within the framework of her charity foundation’s activities, met with Australian businessman Andrew Forrest. On May 21, together with the president, she congratulated Ukrainians on Vyshyvanka Day.
Moreover, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) officially stated that no procedural actions have been taken or planned against O. Zelenska.
There is not the slightest information in any official sources of Ukrainian state institutions, the presidency, or international organizations that O. Zelenska has changed her residence, left Ukraine urgently, or was secretly evacuated.
Rumors about the alleged departure are based solely on statements from anonymous pro-Russian channels, without providing documents, photos, reliable witnesses, or official confirmations.
The story about allegedly transported millions of euros, gold bars, and precious stones is also unsupported by any evidence and fits the classic Kremlin propaganda narratives about supposedly “fleeing” and “hoarding” representatives of the Ukrainian government.
Rumors about the investigation are also false
This news appeared against the background of another related to corruption in Ukraine. In May, the Supreme Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine imposed a preventive measure on the former head of the presidential office, Andriy Yermak — detention with the right to be released on bail of 140 million hryvnias (2.7 million euros). Later, it was reported that the bail was paid.
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Russian propaganda media quickly exploited this story for a broader narrative about the allegedly “corrupt Ukrainian government elite.” Kremlin-controlled channels and news agencies soon began “attaching” President Volodymyr Zelensky’s circle to the investigation of A. Yermak — primarily his wife O. Zelenska — trying to create the impression that corruption scandals have already reached the president’s family itself.
In the second half of May, the Russian news agency “RIA Novosti” announced that the Ukrainian Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office and the National Anti-Corruption Bureau are finishing an investigation regarding O. Zelenska. This was allegedly indicated to the agency by Russian security services.
One source reportedly stated that the anti-corruption agencies supposedly have enough grounds to detain the First Lady of Ukraine and are currently deciding which case to start with.
This report was also shared on social networks and by Belarusian media.
However, this too was a lie — NABU and SAPO denied reports about investigations against O. Zelenska.
SAPO also separately posted a message on “Telegram” stating that reports about procedural actions or investigations concerning the Ukrainian president’s wife do not correspond to reality.
“Russian propaganda has repeatedly tried to use anti-corruption investigations to destabilize our country from within,” SAPO said.
15min verdict: false. There is no reliable evidence that Olena Zelenska fled Ukraine or that an anti-corruption investigation is being conducted against her. The origins of the fake news lead to anonymous pro-Russian channels and “parody” accounts on social networks, while the First Lady of Ukraine appeared publicly multiple times in Kyiv during that time. Ukrainian anti-corruption institutions officially denied information about alleged procedural actions against O. Zelenska. Stories about “secret evacuation,” millions of euros, gold bars, and precious stones are unsupported by any facts and correspond to typical Kremlin propaganda narratives aimed at discrediting the Ukrainian government.
Publication prepared by 15min in cooperation with “Meta”, aimed at stopping the spread of misleading news on social networks. More about the program and its rules – here.
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