(JTA) — A Ukrainian Jewish politician has been arrested on suspicion of embezzlement and participating in organized crime.

Hennadiy Korban, head of the UKROP party that he founded in June, was arrested Saturday in Dnepropetrovsk, a city in eastern Ukraine. He is accused of stealing $1.7 million intended to fund Ukrainian troops fighting the pro-Russian rebellion.

His attorney called the arrest politically motivated, Reuters reported.

Korban, a member of the board of trustees of the Dnepropetrovsk Jewish community, is a close associate of former Dnepropetrovsk governor Ihor Kolomoisky, serving as his deputy before the oligarch was removed from office in March.

Last month, Korban lost in his bid for mayor of Kiev, Ukraine’s capital city.

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