Zelensky's ex-chief of staff in court as Ukraine corruption probe escalates

President Volodymyr Zelensky's former right-hand man Andriy Yermak appeared in a Kyiv court on Tuesday, after he was named by Ukraine's two anti-corruption agencies as a suspect in a money-laundering scheme.Yermak's lawyer had earlier denounced as "baseless" allegations that the former head of the presidential office had been caught up in a corruption scandal surrounding a $10.5m (£7.5m) luxury construction project outside Kyiv.Hours before the court hearing Yermak told reporters "I do not have any house, I only have one flat and one car", adding later that he would comment afterwards.For years he was a close friend of Zelensky, and led Ukraine's talks with the US until an anti-corruption raid on his flat last November prompted his resignation.Ukraine's Anti-corruption Prosecutor's Office (Sap) said it was asking the Kyiv court to either place him in preventive detention or give him bail of about $4m (£3m).The head of the National Anti-corruption Bureau (Nabu) stressed that Zelensky himself was not part of the pre-trial investigation.Yermak had been the president's closest adviser throughout Russia's full-scale invasion launched in 2022, until he became caught up in a broader inquiry by Sap and Nabu into an alleged $100m (£74m) embezzlement scheme in Ukraine's nuclear energy sector.He was not charged or formally named as a suspect at the time, however the swirling allegations have cast a shadow over Ukraine's bid to join the European Union. Last year, Zelensky had to scrap a law that weakened the independence of the two anti-corruption agencies, following widespread protests and criticism from the EU.