Ex-deputy mayor of Odesa fined for absence from court hearing

The High Anti-Corruption Court of Ukraine has imposed a monetary penalty on the mobilized deputy of Odesa City Council, Oleh Bryndak.

According to the Anti-Corruption Action Center, the accused Oleh Bryndak failed to appear at the hearing of the anti-corruption court in the case of seizure of assets of the Odesa community and legalization of income.

The defense justified the reasons for his absence by the fact that Oleh Bryndak was sent to another military unit to perform combat missions in late May.

Interestingly, this military unit is registered in Kyiv. Therefore, the court recognized the reasons for Oleh Bryndak's absence as disrespectful and imposed a monetary penalty in the amount of UAH 6,566.

In April 2025, Oleh Bryndak was expelled from the Standing Committee on Spatial Development, Land Management and Regulation of Land Relations.

In December 2024, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine and the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office brought to court the case of a criminal organization that caused the Odesa community to lose UAH 689 million. The 11 defendants include the current mayor of Odesa, city council officials, the head of the enterprise and other participants.

In December 2022, NABU detectives served three deputy mayors of Odesa with suspicions of bribery and participation in a criminal organization. They also detained a former MP and a confidant along with businessman Borys Kaufman in Odesa.

According to the investigation, the deputy mayors, the businessman, the MP and the trustee were all links in the criminal organization's activities.

According to the investigation, since the fall of 2021, members of this criminal organization have controlled the development of Odesa, the management of local budget funds, as well as the activities of utilities and their interaction with the private sector.

Кирило Бойко