Corruption Investigated in Kherson's ₴400.5M Shelter Construction Deals

Law enforcement officials are investigating corruption schemes during the construction of shelters in Kherson region.

According to the press service of the regional prosecutor's office, over the past two years, law enforcement officers have opened 10 criminal proceedings over the possible misappropriation of funds allocated for the construction of shelters. Three cases have already been referred to court.

According to the investigation, in the first case, the contractor received UAH 3.86 million for 10 shelters that did not meet the technical requirements. In the second, the scope of work was overestimated during the installation of 14 shelters in Kherson, which led to the illegal receipt of UAH 1.29 million. In the third case, the company unreasonably submitted documents for VAT refunds, which resulted in the loss of UAH 141 thousand to the budget.

Investigations into seven more cases are ongoing. Investigators are analyzing the work of contractors and customers, checking the compliance of the shelters with building codes and the declared scope of work.

Meanwhile, the Kherson City Council's Capital Construction Department signed 28 contracts worth UAH 400.5 million without a tender. The largest contracts - 4 contracts worth UAH 225.7 million - were awarded to Budpostach-STSV LLC.

This company has been operating for over 9 years. Initially, it was registered in Lviv under the name Vector-SVS, in the fall of 2023 it changed its registration to Ivano-Frankivsk, and later to Kherson.

Recently, the Civil Protection Department of the Kherson City Council signed new contracts for the repair of shelters without an open tender and without using the electronic procurement system. The total value of the agreements exceeds UAH 8 million, and only three entrepreneurs received all the contracts.

Earlier, the Department of Civil Protection of Kherson City Council signed a number of contracts totaling UAH 18.69 million within two days. All these contracts were distributed without using the electronic procurement system and without an open tender.

Prior to that, the local authorities in Kherson signed four contracts for the maintenance of simple shelters for collective protection of the population. The total amount of the contracts is almost UAH 10 million, and all contracts were awarded to one company from Kyiv region, Clarus LLC.

Ірина Глухова