Investigation into the Property Holdings of Judge Ruslan Ivanytsky's Family
An investigation into the assets of Judge Ruslan Ivanytsky's family has revealed they own more than 30 properties. Among them is a luxury apartment in Kyiv purchased at a price far below market value. In November 2023, the judge's mother, Hanna Ivanytska, bought a 104-square-meter apartment in the elite Signature residential complex on Kyiv's Pechersk district. At the time of purchase, the market rate was nearly $4,000 per square meter, meaning the apartment's minimum value should have been at least $400,000 or 14.5 million hryvnias. However, Hanna Ivanytska acquired it for just 3.6 million hryvnias, a fraction of its worth.
Hanna Ivanytska, who worked in the Zakarpattia region from the 1970s until serving as deputy mayor of Mukachevo, ended her civil service career in 2014. Her official income from 1998 to 2024 was less than 12 million hryvnias. Judge Ruslan Ivanytsky has approximately 15 years of judicial experience. During a 2018 interview with the High Council of Justice, it emerged that he had transferred ownership of premises in Mukachevo to his mother via a power of attorney. One of these premises, which once belonged to the judge, was involved in a 2013 criminal case related to gambling services.
Property Assets and Conflicts of Interest
Hanna Ivanytska also owns 50 acres of land near the center of Mukachevo, purchased along with a building for 1.38 million hryvnias in 2018. In 2022, the Mukachevo City Council approved a plan to change the designated purpose of this land for multi-apartment residential development. Among the council deputies who voted on this decision was Hanna Ivanytska's daughter, Olesia Ostrovska, the judge's sister. Olesia Ostrovska's husband, Mykola Ostrovskyi, heads a department in the State Geocadastre's main office in Zakarpattia Oblast. Olesia Ostrovska co-manages the 'Velur' restaurant with her mother.
A 2025 BMW X7 has been recorded on the family's property, though it is not formally registered to any of them. This vehicle model has a starting price of around $143,000. Some assets are registered under the judge's 21-year-old niece, Anastasiia Ostrovska, who registered as a sole proprietor at age 16. In 2023, Anastasiia Ostrovska purchased two plots of land (13 acres) for 500,000 hryvnias, where a 72-apartment building is under construction. She also transferred another plot for development to the 'Dream of Zakarpattia 2' cooperative. Anastasiia Ostrovska owns a 2020 BMW 530D and a 2024 Range Rover Sport, with a combined value starting at $180,000. This pattern of asset ownership by a young family member raises significant questions about the sources of wealth.
"The minimum price for the apartment Hanna Ivanytska bought should have been at least $400,000 or 14.5 million hryvnias. Yet she purchased it for almost four times less—3.6 million hryvnias—or under a thousand dollars per square meter. Such prices are unheard of, not just in the Signature complex, but even in older Soviet-era apartments on Pechersk."
Covert investigative actions established that gambling services were being provided on eight gaming machines in the basement of a three-story building, as noted in a 2013 court ruling related to the case.
This situation highlights critical issues of transparency and ethics within Ukraine's judicial system, particularly concerning potential conflicts of interest linked to a judge's family assets. It reflects broader, persistent challenges with corruption in Ukrainian society. Investigations like this are a crucial step toward rebuilding public trust in judicial institutions and strengthening anti-corruption efforts.