Fake Resignation of the Prosecutor General: How and Why Kurshutov’s Telegram Empire Is Attacking Kravchenko

The story of the sudden ‘resignation’ of Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko is not about emotional decisions made by the prosecutor himself. It is about how the shadowy Telegram-based blackmail industry operates. On December 12, dozens of channels simultaneously pushed a fake narrative, triggering a wave that spread from Joker to Snidanok Khimery and bringing to the surface the name of businessman Seyar Kurshutov. Sources link him to an extensive network of toxic media projects and an anti-Ukrainian agenda. In this article, we reconstruct the chronology of the attack, trace the connections between channels and individuals, and examine how this information operation may be tied to billion-hryvnia drone procurement tenders and attempts to pressure the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Bureau of Economic Security.

On December 12, Ukrainian Telegram channels began actively spreading claims about the alleged resignation of Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko. The first to publish this claim was the Telegram channel Snidanok Khimery, which is associated with journalist Vasyl Krutchak. The ‘news’ quickly spread across dozens of other channels on such a scale that the Prosecutor General was forced to issue a firm public denial.

After that, former MP Ihor Mosiychuk and other sources claimed that the attack was allegedly orchestrated by controversial businessman Seyar Kurshutov, who is reportedly hiding in Vienna. However, no evidence was provided, nor were Kurshutov’s motives explained.

Let us figure this out.

In fact, the very first post about Kravchenko’s pseudo-resignation appeared on the Joker channel (which, as is well known, belongs to Kurshutov – more on this below) as early as Thursday.

At the same time, the post cowardly failed to state directly that it referred to the resignation decision itself. However, the post gained traction. That same evening, the channel even made an awkward attempt to backtrack by publishing another post –

– about the appointment of a Deputy Prosecutor General, implying that the previous post referred to the same decision. This looks openly unconvincing, since Kravchenko announced Lohachov’s appointment at 15:17, while the Joker post about the decision was published three hours earlier. Moreover, the appointment itself was routine and hardly warranted double coverage.

The next day, disinformation appeared on Snidanok Khimery. This also follows a certain logic: someone clearly wanted to plant a false lead. The alleged owner of this channel, Vasyl Krutchak, worked for a long time on the “Islandia” project together with Volodymyr Petrov. Many people still associate them, even though Krutchak has had no connection to Petrov for many years, as he left the project long ago. Currently, according to sources, Krutchak is within Kurshutov’s sphere of influence.

Seyar Kurshutov is a former official and businessman of Crimean Tatar origin who publicly presents himself as an investor, restaurateur, and economic commentator. He regularly appears in interviews and chat shows discussing customs, smuggling, and Ukraine’s economic policy. In public registries, he is listed as a sole proprietor engaged in activities ranging from restaurant business to IT consulting and marketing services.

At the same time, a number of investigative articles describe him as an informal ‘customs curator’, the ‘head of a smuggling office’ during the Hranovskyi era. He was also included in the 2021 National Security and Defense Council sanctions list and the media called him the ‘king of Ukrainian smuggling’. Later reports stated that he was removed from the sanctions list and left for Vienna, and also suggested that he may possess a Russian passport and have family business interests in occupied Crimea.

There is ample evidence of Kurshutov’s substantial media influence. In particular, he has been linked to the following bloggers, media figures, and politicians:

1. Yuriy Romanenko: there are direct public joint broadcasts and publications. Kurshutov appeared in programs and interviews together with Romanenko, including on the HVYLIA YouTube channel.
2. Denys Koshelnyk: media outlets and Telegram sources claim that Koshelnyk appears as one of the blogger-administrators ‘linked’ to the projects allegedly backed by Kurshutov (there are rumours of their information cooperation).
3. Vasyl Krutchak: in media and Telegram publications mention him as one of the bloggers linked in various accounts to Kurshutov (there are rumours of their cooperation).
4. Censor.net and Yuriy Butusov: there are a number of articles claiming that Kurshutov was allegedly among the sponsors and patrons of certain media or projects associated with Butusov.
5. Oleksii Arestovych: several publications and blog posts contain claims that Kurshutov allegedly financed certain initiatives involving Arestovych. It was reported that Kurshutov did it together with Andriy Bohdan.

In late 2024, blogger Yuryi Bohdanov also associated the organization and hosting of events by the Ukrainian World Assembly in Vienna with Kurshutov. Public participants reportedly included media figures such as Mosiychuk, Kost Bondarenko, and Karpuntsov.

Even more interesting is Kurshutov’s Telegram empire. While traditional media and bloggers have been widely discussed, this topic remains largely unexplored. More precisely, investigations into Kurshutov’s projects exist, but few understand that he stands behind a number of them.

The most well-known investigation is “Yermak’s Joker” by Hromadske. It describes how the Joker Telegram channel became a tool for political influence, blackmail, and extortion. Businesses were blackmailed for hundreds of thousands of dollars, with explicit ‘price lists’ published directly in the channel’s description. Roman Kravets was the focus of that and subsequent investigations. However, multiple sources note that he was merely an executor, while the mastermind and ideologue of the project was Kurshutov himself.

Before Joker, Kurshutov controlled the Dark Knight channel, where he refined the blackmail model and realized how powerful a tool it could be – until the channel was returned to its previous owners. On the Joker channel, this model was implemented on an industrial scale.

The story of how Seyar Kurshutov gained control over the Joker channel is particularly revealing. According to sources, it occurred through certain law-enforcement officials, he worked with on smuggling-related matters and who used the channel for leaks. After gaining control, Kurshutov transformed it into a ‘business tool’, launching aggressive, long-term attacks with direct extortion. In this model, all risks were placed on the not-too-bright Kravets, while Kurshutov positioned himself as someone who could ‘only influence’ him.

The story of how Seyar Kurshutov gained control over the Joker channel is particularly revealing. According to sources, it occurred through certain law-enforcement officials, he worked with on smuggling-related matters and who used the channel for leaks. After gaining control, Kurshutov transformed it into a ‘business tool’, launching aggressive, long-term attacks with direct extortion. In this model, all risks were placed on the not-too-bright Kravets, while Kurshutov positioned himself as someone who could ‘only influence’ him.

At some point, this ‘ideal’ business model began to collapse, as more and more people started transferring payments for ending attacks directly through Kurshutov and realized that he was, at the very least, one of the channel’s beneficiaries. Kurshutov understood that ‘he had become too visible and would soon be dealt with directly’, and launched new extortion projects.

For this reason, and also to ‘legalize’ the business again, a second line of Telegram channels was created – both newly launched and those brought under Kurshutov’s control. Among them was the channel of Oleksandr Dubinskyi. According to sources, Kurshutov fears any renewed exposure and actively denies any involvement with the ‘new’ channels when asked directly.

So, what are these channels? In reality, we are talking about dozens of them. The key ones include Sorosiata, MAGA, and Equilibrium, as well as channels with telling names such as Ochko Krippy and Ochko Oleksiia Kuleby, which respectively began attacking and pressuring Maksym Krippa, Oleksii Kuleba, and Maksym Shkil. The targets apparently refused to pay. This is evidenced by the fact that the Ochko Oleksiia Kuleby channel was shut down, while Ochko Krippy was renamed Cards, Money, Offshore and now targets a broader range of figures.

The history of this channel is illustrative. It was created by the administrator of the Dubinskyi Pro channel – that is, according to official positioning, by sanctioned MP Oleksandr Dubinskyi, who is suspected of high treason. He later deleted this post for unknown reasons, but, as is well known, screenshots do not disappear.

This is an illustrative detail. Many people cannot understand how Dubinskyi can actively run a channel from pre-trial detention. According to our information, the answer is simple: he does not. More precisely, he only oversees the part related to his detention and criminal case. The channel and the X (Twitter) account administrator is located outside Ukraine.

According to sources, every month Seyar Kurshutov, by agreement (with bonuses for especially toxic topics) with Oleksandr Dubinskyi, transfers a ‘subscription fee’ to Dubinskyi’s sister to support the operation of the Dubinskyi PRO Telegram team and its ‘satellite’ channels (the cooperation began when Kurshutov purchased the Dark Knight Telegram channel from Dubinskyi). In exchange, publication rights were divided as follows:

1. Everything related to Dubinsky and his imprisonment is handled by Dubinskyi himself and his sister.
2. All other publications – about top politicians, the political situation, commissioned pieces about businessmen, and manipulative materials – are handled by Seyar Kurshutov. This allowed certain ‘information executions’ to be carried out under the Dubinskyi brand.

It is extremely telling that all these channels – from Dubinskyi Pro to Cards, Money, Offshore – broadcast a distinctly anti-Ukrainian agenda. Almost every post echoes Russian propaganda.

If this were done solely by Dubinskyi, who has been sanctioned by the United States as part of a Russian disinformation network, it would appear logical. But why would someone comfortably living in Vienna do the same? The simplest explanation is that Mr. Kurshutov is, to put it mildly, within the orbit of that same network. This is indicated, among other things, by reposts from his channels by figures such as Vadym Rabinovych, Volodymyr Oliynyk, and the Russian Telegram channel Boilernaya.

However, let us return to the attack on the Prosecutor General.

On Friday, after Kravchenko’s statement, a post appeared on Dubinskyi’s channel containing insults in the vein of “you can’t do anything to me.” It is obvious that a detainee is unlikely to have written this personally.

It should be noted that the channel regularly attacks Kravchenko.

Meanwhile, Cards, Money, Offshore accused the Prosecutor General of allegedly orchestrating the pseudo-resignation scandal himself in order to divert attention from the Bureau of Economic Security case involving Cosmolot.

This brings us to the most interesting question – Kurshutov’s motives. Why does he so desperately want Kravchenko removed, and what issue does he have with the Bureau of Economic Security?

A likely answer lies in criminal case No. 72025001420000026, initiated by the Bureau of Economic Security under the procedural supervision of the Prosecutor General’s Office, concerning billion-hryvnia drone procurement tenders for Ukraine’s Defense Forces. According to sources, these tenders involve companies allegedly controlled by Kurshutov through his ‘customs’ associate Hlib Lobov:

• TOV “Koliada KA” (Limited Liability Company), EDRPOU 44689618
• TOV “GE Technology” (Limited Liability Company), EDRPOU 45827158
• TOV “Flaytech Ukraine” (Limited Liability Company), EDRPOU 45396725
• TOV “Euro Tunnels” (Limited Liability Company), EDRPOU 44751790
• TOV “ARES” (Limited Liability Company), EDRPOU 45587337, etc.

However, this is a subject for a separate investigation, which we will certainly conduct.

For now, it is enough to note that Kurshutov has not stopped: currently, new messages have appeared on Telegram channels that look like a logical continuation of the previous ‘messages’.

We believe that this case is not about personal grievances but about an attack on state institutions. This should be assessed not only – and not so much – by the Prosecutor General’s Office and the Bureau of Economic Security, but by the Security Service of Ukraine and the National Security and Defense Council. First and foremost, they should examine how and why sanctions against Kurshutov were not extended and address the issue of his extradition to Ukraine.