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Ukraine's State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) is conducting raids on the premises of owner of TV Channel Pryamiy, ex-MP Volodymyr Makeyenko.

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"I can confirm State Bureau of Investigation investigators are working [there]. The investigative actions are part of a pretrial investigation into a criminal case related to the purchase and sale of the Pryamiy TV channel," SBI Press Secretary Anzhelika Ivanova told UNIAN.

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Members of the European Solidarity Party, in particular, Ukrainian MP Iryna Friz, have confirmed information about the searches.

"This morning, searches began at Pryamiy TV channel owner Volodymyr Makeyenko's place," she wrote on Facebook on November 7.

A report about the searches has also been posted on the channel's website. The channel sees such actions as pressure and an attack on freedom of speech.