You're reading: Lutsenko diagnosed with heart diseases, insists on his treatment outside prison, his wife says

Iryna Lutsenko, the wife and defense lawyer of former Ukrainian Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko, has said that after a medical examination on November 8, her husband was diagnosed with heart diseases, the press service of the People's Self-Defense Party reported on Saturday.

The former minister said this in a phone interview, and he also wrote a respective statement to the chief of the Mena penal colony, where he is serving his sentence.

“In his statement, Lutsenko is demanding that the leadership of the colony provide him with the necessary medical treatment in a specialized hospital in order to eliminate constant physical pain. He also said that after the examination on November 8, doctors, in a medical report about Lutsenko’s ‘satisfactory health,’ in addition to his current illnesses, also pointed to heart diseases,” Lutsenko’s wife said.

“In their report, doctors also recommended further examination of the intestine, and Lutsenko stated his agreement only if he is taken to a specialized hospital and gets the prescription of the doctor who will bear personal criminal liability for his treatment and health,” she said.

Lutsenko was arrested in December 2010.