KYIV—The journalist who broke two of the biggest war-time corruption stories to embarrass President Volodymyr Zelensky’s government has been threatened and abused, and even suffered an attack on his home by hired thugs.

Yuri Nikolov, the editor-in-chief of independent publication Nashi Groshi (Our Money), told The Daily Beast that the so-called police investigation into the intimidation tactics used against him has become “a mockery.” He says he has been warned by law enforcement officials to back off and stop criticizing Zelensky. “It seems the investigators don’t want to follow the threats out of fear that they will discover something big,” he said.

The attack on Nikolov is part of a wider crackdown against the media that began early this year when the independent press reacted negatively to Zelensky’s plans to fire the popular commander-in-chief of the military.

As tensions between the media and the presidential office grew, Ukrainian intel operatives were caught setting up hidden cameras to record off-duty journalists partying. Kompromat footage of reporters taking drugs was posted on social media in a flagrant state-backed effort to undermine their investigative work.

“We have two sources confirming that the crackdown on the press was initiated by our leadership, because President Zelensky feels offended by any criticism,” Sevgil Musaieva, editor-in-chief of the country’s most respected news outlet, Ukrainska Pravda, told The Daily Beast.

Three other editors-in-chief at top Ukrainian publications told The Daily Beast that intense pressure on journalists who dared to criticize Zelensky is continuing and police investigations into the most egregious attacks show no sign of progress.

Musaieva, who runs a team of over 150 reporters across the war-torn country, said it has been made known to her that the presidential office “dislikes” the outlet.

“The pressure began when journalists questioned the president’s decision to fire top commander General Zaluzhny,” she said.

General Valery Zaluzhny had become increasingly outspoken in his blunt assessment of the stalemate with Russia before he was fired. He pointed the finger at the reluctance of Zelensky’s government to authorize wider conscription to bolster his forces, which have been losing ground in recent months.

During the decade of conflict with Russia since the seizure of Crimea in 2014, Musaieva’s colleagues have been captured, assassinated, or gone missing in the field in the name of serving the Ukrainian people. At least four are now serving in the army. But that is not enough to protect them from accusations that they are not sufficiently patriotic.

“Critics affiliated with the government called me ‘cheburek’ [which is an insult based on traditional Crimean meat pies] after our reports on the conflict between President Zelensky and top commander Gen. Zaluzhny; and they were not simple........

© The Daily Beast