Embezzlement of budget funds revealed during renovation of Berezivka school

Budget funds for the renovation of a school in Berezovsky district became the target of a fraudulent scheme. Suspicion fell on the director of the contractor, who formalized the work without actually performing most of it.

This was reported by the press service of the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office.

The director of a private company in Odesa region is under investigation for misappropriating budget funds during the renovation of a school. The Berezovsk District Prosecutor's Office notified the businessman of suspicion of forgery and embezzlement of public funds under Article 366, paragraph 1, and Article 191, paragraph 4, of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

The investigation established that in September 2024, the education department of one of the village councils of Berezivskyi district entered into a contract with the company for major repairs of the school facade.

The head of the company drew up and signed a certificate of completion with false information. In it, he indicated the full scope of work and the materials used - from cleaning and priming the facade to ceramic tiling and the use of building mixtures.

In fact, some of the work was only formally performed, and some work was not performed at all, but the money from the local budget was transferred to the company's accounts in full.

According to law enforcement officers, as a result of the actions of the director of the construction company, the community suffered losses of more than UAH 250 thousand. A pre-trial investigation is currently underway.

The Odesa-based company is also under suspicion by the Kherson Prosecutor's Office for uncompleted work during the restoration of the museum and alleged misappropriation of budget funds. The company, which received more than UAH 370 million in public tenders, is already involved in several criminal proceedings, and its director is hiding from the investigation.

TheCenter for Public Investigations has figured out what "red flags" accompany the company's history and at which facilities it is accused of embezzlement.

Анна Бальчінос