Activists against the zoo: Accenture analyzes the situation

The Prymorskyi District Prosecutor's Office of Odesa has opened criminal proceedings against the director of the Odesa Zoo, Ihor Bilyakov, who is accused of cruelty to animals.

The prosecutors did this following a statement by the NGO UAnimals, and Accent looked into the situation.

The director of the Odesa zoo, Ihor Bilyakov, confirmed that the zoo was visited by specialists from the State Ecological Inspectorate and given instructions to correct the deficiencies.

"This happened after the incident with the leopard that was shot by the police in December. Then we were given several orders regarding hyena-like dogs, hyenas, lions and leopards. The fact is that the enclosures in which the animals are currently kept lag behind modern standards. When they were built, there were some standards, and now there are other standards - there is not enough space for these animals. We are trying to correct this gradually, but these enclosures are not yet up to date," the director noted.

Earlier, the Department of International Cooperation, Culture and Marketing together with the Capital Construction Department preliminarily calculated the approximate cost of completing the restoration of the Odesa Zoo. It will cost approximately UAH 1.6 billion.

Кирило Бойко