Ukraine protesters keep graft trial on track despite health scare, bomb threats

Head of Ukraine's tax and customs service Roman Nasirov (L), who is under investigation over the suspected embezzlement, and his attorney attend a court hearing in Kiev, Ukraine, March 6, 2017. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

KIEV (Reuters) - A judge ordered Ukraine's top tax official on Tuesday to be jailed or pay a hefty bail pending his trial for suspected embezzlement, in a landmark ruling hailed by protesters as a blow for transparency in one of Europe's most corrupt countries.

Pro-reform activists and lawmakers had kept up a noisy, two-day vigil outside the Kiev court house, worried that Roman Nasirov might otherwise try to escape justice as other senior officials have done in the past.