A 38-million contract in the Odesa region was awarded to a person implicated in investigations into embezzlement

Officials decided to award nearly 38 million hryvnias for the renovation of a school cafeteria in the Odesa region without a competitive bidding process. Over the past year, the contractor has significantly increased the number of government contracts it has received, while companies associated with it have come under the scrutiny of law enforcement agencies.

The Center for Public Investigations analyzed the procurement and examined what is known about the company that received the multimillion-hryvnia contract.

The Department of Education, Culture, Sports, and Youth Policy of the Velykodolynsk Town Council selected the contractor for the major renovation of the cafeteria at Velykodolynsk Lyceum No. 1. According to the Prozorro system, the contract is worth 37.7 million hryvnias. The work will be funded under the Ukraine Facility program through a state subsidy, the local budget, and support from the European Union.

<picture></picture>SCREENSHOT: Prozorro

There was no competition—the only bid was submitted by Apus Plus LLC, which offered to perform the work for 37.72 million hryvnias, just 348,000 hryvnias less than the expected amount. This company was selected as the winner.

The contractor must complete a major renovation of the school cafeteria at 95 Tsentralna Street in the village of Velykodolynske by October 8, 2026. The project involves modernizing the cafeteria in accordance with the state school meal reform.

<picture></picture>SCREENSHOT: Prozorro

Accordingto theYouControl analytical system, Apus Plus LLC was registered in Odesa in 2020 with a registered capital of 5,000 hryvnias. The company’s current founder is Serhiy Freze. In total, the company has earned over 137 million hryvnias from government procurement contracts.

The company received the most contracts in 2025, when the total value of the tenders it won exceeded 101 million hryvnias. It was precisely after the change of ownership in the fall of 2024 that the company began actively winning government procurement contracts, with most of the contracts being awarded without competition. Among the clients are the Department of Municipal Services, the Capital Construction Department of the Odesa City Council, the “Vuzivskyi” Housing and Communal Services Municipal Enterprise, and the Primorsk and Khadzhibey District Administrations, among others.

<picture></picture>SCREENSHOT: YouControl

But there’s something else that’s more interesting. Law enforcement authoritiesopeneda criminal investigation following a complaint filed by the publication “Anticorruption Dimension” regarding the alleged provision of false information by Pilon West LLC in a certificate required for participation in tenders, which could indicate signs of official forgery.

During the investigation, investigators uncovered the alleged embezzlement of budget funds during the repair of public amenities in Odesa. The court ruling states that 25 such contracts were signed in the city’s Peresypsky District in 2025.

According to the investigation, four individual entrepreneurs and three private companies—some of which appear to be shell companies—may have been involved in the scheme. The work was actually carried out by subcontractors whom investigators link to the inner circle of officials at the Odesa City Council’s Department of Municipal Services. Among the companies mentioned in the court ruling is Apus Plus LLC.

<picture></picture>SCREENSHOT: reyestr.court.gov.ua

Journalists also noted that after a change in ownership, several companies immediately began actively securing government contracts.

The Center for Public Investigations also analyzed the activities of “Pilon West” LLC, which won the tender to renovate the cafeteria at Odesa Lyceum No. 86, with an estimated cost of 36.6 million hryvnias.

This company had already been mentioned in criminal proceedings back in 2021. Investigators believed that after signing a contract to renovate a residential building on Desantny Boulevard, the company’s director may have embezzled public funds by forging documents. However, the court acquitted him of criminal liability due to the statute of limitations having expired.

Анна Літман