Timur Mindich has "illegally enriched himself by organizing criminal activities in several sectors of Ukraine's economy," a prosecutor from the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (Sapo) said during a court appearance, AFP reports.
Mindich is a long-time friend of Zelenskyy and co-owner of the television production company Kvartal 95, which was founded by the president, writes The Kyiv Independent.
The designation comes the day after Ukraine's Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) announced that it had discovered systematic bribery in the energy sector and carried out extensive raids against a number of suspects.
Around $100 million has passed through the money laundering system used, according to Nabu.
As recently as last summer, President Volodymyr Zelensky's government planned to limit the independence of Nabu and Sapo. But after widespread protests, the government was finally forced to back down.
