Court acquits head of village council in Mykolaiv region accused of embezzlement

The Central District Court of Mykolaiv <b>acquitted the former head of the Olshany village council</b>, whom the prosecutor's office accused of <b>embezzling 324 thousand hryvnias</b>. The case concerned funds allocated for stadium repairs.

The verdict in the case was delivered by the Central Court of Mykolaiv on September 2, 2025.

According to the investigation, in 2019, the village council ordered the reconstruction of the stadium. In March 2020, a contract was signed with Okna-City LLC for <b>UAH 6.3 million</b>. However, according to the prosecutor's office, the contractor completed only part of the work, despite the fact that in October the council paid the contract in full.

In the same month, according to the prosecution, a second contract was signed for <b>330 thousand hryvnias</b> for the same works that were already in the original documentation. The prosecutor qualified this as 'double payment' and embezzlement, demanding compensation for damages.

The ex-head himself did not admit his guilt. He explained that the construction was part of the Big Construction program, and the decision on the additional contract was a collegial one. He claimed that the second contract covered the types of work that had not been completed under the previous contract, as well as the cost of purchasing an additional stand. The presence of all small architectural forms, markings and two stands is confirmed by the inventory and expert reports.

The ex-chairman emphasized that the entire process was controlled by technical and author's supervision, the treasury and specialized commissions, which found no violations. The defendant's lawyer insisted on the inadmissibility of the prosecution's evidence and the falsity of the expert reports.

The court sided with the defendant, noting that the prosecutor's office had not provided adequate evidence of 'double payment' and damage. Instead, it was established that the facility was put into operation and the additional funds were spent on the actual work performed. As a result, the defendant was acquitted in full, and the prosecutor's civil claim was dismissed.

Катерина Глушко