Bribery judge and military uniform: the Supreme Court of Justice sentenced Luka Kryl to 8 years in prison

The High Anti-Corruption Court has sentenced a judge who was twice caught receiving illegal benefits

The High Anti-Corruption Court has found Luka Kril, a judge of the Turkiv District Court of Lviv Oblast, guilty of a corruption crime and sentenced him to eight years in prison with confiscation of property.

As reported by the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, the convicted person is also prohibited from holding positions in state and local government bodies, except for elected ones, for three years.

Two bribery convictions

Luka Kril was the only judge of the Turkiv District Court and repeatedly came into the sights of law enforcement officers.

He was first caught at the end of 2018 while receiving a thousand euros of illegal benefits for not bringing a person to justice for driving under the influence.

The judge became a subject of an anti-corruption investigation for the second time in early 2020. According to the investigation, he demanded $500 from the businessman for not bringing him to administrative responsibility.

Despite being suspended after the first exposure, Kril later served as a judge again, since there were no other judges left in the district court.

From the complaint to the application for dismissal — almost four years

Back in 2021, a disciplinary complaint against the judge was filed with the High Council of Justice. However, the decision was made only in January 2025.

The First Disciplinary Chamber of the High Council of Justice concluded that Luka Kril should be brought to disciplinary responsibility and filed a motion for his dismissal.

Mobilization during the case

The case received additional resonance from information about the judge’s mobilization.

In March 2025, the Supreme Judicial Council received a notification from one of the military units in the Lviv region that Luka Kril had been called up for military service. After that, the court ensured his remote participation in the sessions via video conference.

Almost two million hryvnias of income during the suspension

Despite the suspension from administering justice, Kril continued to receive a judicial fee.

According to the declarations, in 2023 he received more than 819 thousand hryvnias of salary, in 2024 – almost 797 thousand hryvnias. In 2025, he declared another 247 thousand hryvnias of judicial fee and more than 332 thousand hryvnias of financial support as a military serviceman.

What is confiscated from a convicted judge

The verdict provides for the confiscation of all property belonging to the judge on the right of private property.

At the same time, according to the latest declaration, only a 2007 Range Rover car is registered directly to Luka Kryl. The apartment and land plot are registered to relatives, and the judge’s bank accounts contained about 38 thousand hryvnias.

The verdict has not yet entered into force. The convict has the right to appeal the decision of the High Anti-Corruption Court within 30 days.