Former Ukrainian Security Service head hired his son while in office – UP investigation

At the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Ivan Bakanov, former head of the Security Service of Ukraine (SSU), employed his son Artur Lazarenko in the Security Service of Ukraine, where he continues to work to this day.

Source: an investigation by Ukrainska Pravda

Details: Ukrainska Pravda sources noted that at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Bakanov employed his son at the SSU. He, like his father, became a lieutenant and has served in the 6th Directorate of the SSU Counterintelligence Department. Artur Lazarenko has his mother's surname.

According to his job description, he is supposed to supervise the work of military plants and defence companies during the full-scale invasion.

Artur Lazarenko ran away from answering questions from a journalist of Ukrainska Pravda about how he started working for the SSU, where he worked before, and what his position entailed. He refused to talk about his personal life either.

His father, Ivan Bakanov, initially refused to disclose information about "an active SSU employee during a war" in a telephone conversation.

Later, he sent Ukrainska Pravda a clarification. Bakanov said that Lazarenko has been building a military career since childhood, and he received his secondary education at the Ivan Bohun Military Lyceum in Kyiv.

Quote from Bakanov: "As the father of my son, Lazarenko Artur, I am proud of him. Since March 2022, he has joined the Armed Forces of Ukraine and is currently performing complex service tasks to counter the armed aggression against Ukraine, including in the combat zone."

More details: In a comment to Ukrainska Pravda, the SSU confirmed that Lazarenko has been serving there since March 2022, when Ivan Bakanov was the head of the Service.

Quote from the SSU press service: "Artur Lazarenko was enlisted in the SSU on 21 March 2022 in the rank of junior sergeant, during the period when the head of the Security Service was Ivan Bakanov. We would like to draw your attention to the fact that during martial law, the dismissal of SSU servicemen is possible only if there are grounds specified in Article 26 of the Law of Ukraine On Military Duty and Military Service."

Background:

• Bakanov was the head of the Security Service of Ukraine from August 2019 to July 2022.
• In February 2023, it was reported that the SSU had conducted an internal investigation of its former head Ivan Bakanov, but the results were classified.
• On 19 July, it became known that Bakanov had received a lawyer's certificate from the Bar Council of Poltava Oblast.

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