House of Culture in Odesa region to be repaired by contractor under investigation

In Odesa region, a company won a tender to repair the roof of a cultural center. The State Audit Service launched an audit due to suspicious bidding conditions, and the company's director is in custody for embezzlement.

This was reported by Anti-Corruption Dimension.

In Odesa region, the company won a tender for the overhaul of the roof of the Karakurt House of Culture in Bolhrad district despite criminal proceedings for embezzlement of budget funds and the director's being under investigation. In July 2025, the company received a contract worth almost UAH 2.8 million, which attracted the attention of the State Audit Service.

According to Prozorro, the education department of the Vasylivka village council announced an open tender with an expected value of more than UAH 3 million. Three companies took part: FOP Yanchev, LLC Bessarabiyastroy, and PE Vasolbudstroy. The latter company was recognized as the winner, while the other proposals were rejected.

In August 2025, the State Audit Service began monitoring the procurement. The contract with the company was signed on August 8, and on August 14, amendments were made to improve the quality of work. The works involve major repairs and insulation of the house of culture.

Vasolbudstroy PE was founded in June 2017, with Vasyl Kinev as director and owner. The company actively participated in state and municipal tenders, mostly for the education department of Vasylivka village council, receiving contracts worth more than UAH 24 million.

The company's director may be in custody in a criminal proceeding for misappropriation of budget funds during the renovation of the Odesa Regional Cancer Center in 2023, where he overstated the scope and cost of work.

On May 21, the Odesa Court of Appeal upheld the decision to keep Kinev in custody with an alternative bail of UAH 757,000. The lawyer argued that the charges were unfounded, and the case could be viewed more as a commercial dispute. The court concluded that the suspicion was sufficiently substantiated, and that there were risks of hiding or influencing witnesses.

In addition, Kinev is the director of Sgradata PE, which is under criminal investigation for embezzling almost 493 thousand from the budget of the Horodnenska village council during the repair of the house of culture.

In Odesa region, the contract for the construction of a shelter at the Isaiev Agricultural Lyceum is being checked. The work was awarded without competition to a company associated with a member of the district council: until June 2025, the company was owned by his wife and managed by the deputy himself, and the total contract amount was UAH 17.29 million.

Анна Бальчінос