[UPDATED: Nov. 28, 1:24 pm , Kyiv time. Updated with confirmation from Yermak. Updated with confirmation from NABU and details linking the searches to the “Midas” investigation.]

Investigators from Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) launched searches in the government quarter on Thursday morning, with investigative actions reportedly targeting Andriy Yermak, head of the President’s Office.

Ukrainska Pravda media outlet first reported the development.

“UP journalists managed to film around 10 NABU and SAPO officers entering the government quarter,” the report read.

Following the report, the lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak of the Holos party confirmed searches on Telegram.

“NABU and SAPO are conducting searches at [the home of] Andriy Yermak this morning. If anything, get ready to defend NABU/SAPO if necessary,” Zheleznyak wrote.

In a Telegram post published at 9.46 a.m., Yermak confirmed that searches were underway.

“Today, NABU and SAPO are indeed conducting procedural actions at my home. There are no obstacles for the investigators,” he wrote.

According to Yermak, the investigators were given full access to the apartment.

“My lawyers are on site, interacting with law enforcement officers. From my side, I am providing full assistance,” he added.

There is currently no official information about the specific case prompting the search of Yermak’s house. However, Financial Times (FT) journalist Christopher Miller reported that sources confirmed the searches are part of the Midas operation.

“My sources tell me the searches at the Kyiv home of Andriy Yermak, the head of President Zelensky’s office, are connected to the ‘Midas’ investigation - the sweeping probe into alleged graft in Ukraine’s energy sector,” Miller wrote on X.

NABU also confirmed the searches at Yermak’s house.

“NABU and SAPO are conducting investigative actions (searches) at the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine. The investigative actions are authorized and are being carried out within the framework of the investigation. Details to follow,” the agency said.

Several Ukrainian media outlets, citing their sources, reported that investigators did not charge anyone following the search of Yermak’s home.

“No one was notified of the charge. Investigative actions are ongoing,” the outlets said, citing law enforcement sources.

However, ZN.UA reports that NABU is allegedly preparing a charge against Yermak, which may be related to his interest in one of the houses in the “Dynasty” cooperative in the village of Kozyn, near Kyiv.

These houses are located on the grounds of the former recreation center “Soniachna.” In the summer, Bihus.info journalists discovered that a company associated with a former official was building four houses, each approximately 1,000 square meters, on eight hectares of land near the river.

According to ZN.UA sources, this connection may be documented in recordings made in the back office of Timur Mindich, a person involved in the “Midas” case.

The outlet also reported that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was aware of the preparations to file suspicions against Yermak. He was informed by the heads of anti-corruption law enforcement agencies. Following this conversation, the president allegedly decided to appoint Yermak as the head of the Ukrainian negotiation delegation.

Notably, on Nov. 25, NABU Director Semen Kryvonos said he believed the Midas corruption case in the energy sector would expand as the investigation progresses and that new suspicions were likely to follow.

Rumors of Yermak’s imminent political downfall intensified after a series of energy-related corruption scandals triggered opposition demands for the resignation of the entire government and the creation of a new parliamentary coalition.

Justice Minister Herman Halushchenko and Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk submitted their resignations after investigators uncovered that current and former officials at the state nuclear energy company Energoatom had manipulated contracts to generate bribes and laundered roughly $100 million through a covert office.

Last week, following days of speculation that President Volodymyr Zelensky might bow to pressure and dismiss Yermak over the scandal, the president signaled to his parliamentary faction that Yermak’s position was secure  – at least for now.

According to sources cited by Ukrainska Pravda, the lawmaker Mariana Bezuhla directly asked Zelensky whether he intended to fire Yermak or other senior officials.

As one source put it: “Zelensky said that staffing matters in the President’s Office are the president’s responsibility, and he made it clear that Yermak would not be dismissed.”

Zelensky appeared to underscore that stance in his evening address, describing his meeting with lawmakers from his Servant of the People faction.

“There were various issues, including sensitive ones. But the understanding is clear: everyone must work for Ukraine, and so it will be.”

Politico reported that four parliamentary insiders said the situation was particularly delicate for Zelensky because some of the pressure to remove Yermak was coming from within his own party.

“The attacks on such a crucial ally could hardly come at a more sensitive moment for Zelensky,” Politico wrote. “Kyiv faces a massive budget shortfall, and the president must convince his Western allies that Ukraine is a safe place to send billions of euros in vital funding.”

In his latest interview with The Atlantic, Yermak addressed the investigation and the mounting calls for his resignation in detail for the first time, saying the pressure on him has been enormous. He stressed that the case is highly sensitive and requires “an objective and independent investigation without political influence.”

Yermak noted that Zelensky’s decision to appoint him to lead Ukraine’s negotiating team – despite the controversy – demonstrated the president’s continued confidence in him.

Ukrainians, he said, can see that he has stood by Zelensky “during all the most difficult, tragic, and dangerous moments” of the war.

“He trusted me with these negotiations that will decide the fate of our country,” Yermak said, adding that if the public supports the president, “that should answer all their questions.”