Bihus.Info journalists continued to record unknown persons who were following them while preparing material about the wiretapping of the team by employees of the Security Service of Ukraine.
“We kept noticing spies under the office. That is, the typical tramplers who walked around the office building. When we asked them what they were doing there, they could not clearly answer the question of why they got lost and were just running circles around the office. Again, cars with fake license plates, all this continued. Perhaps the previous couple of days were less, but before it was not yet clear that we were definitely coming out with this material, it was active, yes.”
Commenting on the facts of surveillance of the editorial office established during the investigation, she says that this is a huge violation of human rights and interference in privacy and pressure on the editorial office. However, the team cannot yet say who exactly is the customer of this case.
What preceded:
- On January 16, a video was leaked online showing employees of the Bihus.Info investigation project apparently using drugs. Project manager Denis Bihus recorded a video message with explanations and assured that everyone who cooperates with Bihus.Info will pass tests for drug use.
- On February 5, investigative journalists from Bihus.Info reported that they had identified those who installed hidden cameras in hotel rooms to spy on the editorial office. The department for the protection of national statehood of the SBU was responsible for the operation.
- On January 31, President Vladimir Zelensky fired the head of the department for the protection of national statehood of the Security Service of Ukraine, Roman Semenchenko.
- On February 5, the Security Service of Ukraine stated that management had made personnel decisions regarding its department and that “individual employees of Bihus.Info were found among the clients of drug dealers.”