The international police network Interpol put Ukrainian lawmaker Mykola Kniazhytsky on an international wanted list as of March 23. He is wanted by Cambodia on suspicion of raping a minor.
Kniazhytsky, 46, denied the accusation and called it a provocation against him.
Kniazhytsky says that the accusation was adulterated by Russian businessman Konstantin Kagalovsky, who was an owner of Ukrainian TV channel TVi until an ownership dispute over the station in April 2013. Kagalovskiy has accused Kniazhytsky, then CEO of TVi, of orchestrating a takeover of the TV station.
But Kagalovskiy denied the accusation against him in a commentary to Ukrainian website Telekritika on March 23.
Kniazhytsky told the Kyiv Post that he traveled to Cambodia for two days, but did not specify when.
Kniazhytsky’s press service said that on the evening of Sept. 8, 2011, Kniazhytsky hosted a TV talk show “Evening with Mykola Kniazhytsky” and couldn’t make it to Cambodia by Sept. 9. A flight to Cambodia from Ukraine takes around 12-15 hours.
One of the guests of the show, Mridula Ghosh, confirmed to the Kyiv Post that the show was broadcast live and wasn’t pre-recorded.
According to Ukrainian Interpol Bureau, Cambodia law enforcers suspect Kniazhytsky regarding the alleged rape of a minor in Pnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia, on Sept. 9, 2011. His extradition is being sought by Cambodian judicial authorities, who say he will be arrested and prosecuted.
Kniazhytsky is a member of parliament elected on the People’s Front party list. He is head of the parliament’s Committee for Spirituality and Culture.
Kniazhytsky told the Kyiv Post, that he has no intent to defend himself and he will prove that the accusation is falsified.
Kyiv Post staff writer
Yuliana Romanyshyn can be reached at [email protected].
