After the renovation of the high school in Pivdennoukrainsk, the police launched an investigation

The roof repair project at the Kostiantynivka Gymnasium in Pivdennoukrainsk has become the subject of a criminal investigation. Law enforcement officials are investigating whether the cost of construction materials and labor was inflated during the project, which consumed more than 4.8 million hryvnias from the budget.

According to Antikorupciynyi Vymir, the work was commissioned by the Construction and Repair Department of the Pivdennoukrainsk City Council, which entered into two separate contracts with the contractor. Law enforcement officials have opened a case regarding the embezzlement of property under martial law.

As the publication notes, the cost of construction materials was significantly inflated during the work, and the labor costs listed in the documents raise serious doubts.

In May 2025, the client signed the first contract, under which 150-millimeter-thick insulation was priced at 368.09 hryvnia per square meter.

As early as August, the parties entered into a supplementary contract worth 1.55 million hryvnias—without using the electronic procurement system. In the new cost estimate for the same thickness, two layers of material—100 and 50 millimeters thick—were included, with a total cost of 738.62 hryvnia per square meter.

According to law enforcement estimates cited by Anticorruption Dimension, the price of the same insulation more than doubled, with a difference of 216,000 hryvnias.

In addition, the client paid for a lightning rod costing 105,000 hryvnias without specifying in the documents the brand, model, or technical specifications of the equipment.

Investigators also noted the unrealistic deadlines for completing the work under the supplementary agreement. The contract was signed on August 12, and the acceptance certificate was signed just 13 days later.

According to the cost estimate, this scope of work required nearly 5,700 man-hours. Law enforcement officials calculated that the contractor’s 11 officially declared workers would have had to work nearly 37 hours a day, which is physically impossible.

The work was performed by Yulia Yeromenko, a sole proprietor. According to data from the YouControl analytical system, cited by Anticorruption Dimension, her primary business activity is retail sales from stalls and at markets, although she has registered a total of 61 business activities.

According to the Clarity Project, over the course of several years, the entrepreneur signed 15 contracts totaling 7 million hryvnias. She received nearly all of these contracts from departments of the South Ukrainian City Council—in particular, the Department of Construction and Repairs paid her 5.8 million hryvnias.

On December 27, 2025, several months after receiving payment for the school’s renovation, Yulia Yeromenko voluntarily terminated her sole proprietorship.

Investigators obtained a court order granting them access to the entrepreneur’s bank documents and account transaction history. This should help verify the actual costs of materials and determine who ultimately received the public funds.

Ірина Глухова