In Odesa, a city hall official and an accomplice will stand trial for granting immunity to a street vendor

The case of a former Odessa City Council official, who is accused of accepting a bribe to save a small architectural form from demolition, has been referred to court. He and his accomplice face up to ten years in prison.

According to the Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office, an indictment against a former employee of one of the Odesa City Council’s departments and the head of a civic organization has been submitted to the court. They are accused of accepting a bribe as part of a premeditated conspiracy.

According to the investigation, in April, the official called the owner of a small retail kiosk selling fast food near one of Odesa’s parks.

<picture></picture>PHOTO: Press Service of the National Police in Odesa Region

He said that the validity period of the location permit—a document required for placing the structure—had expired. This applied to the kiosk and the gazebo next to it. The official warned that without the proper paperwork, the kiosk would be demolished.

At the same time, he offered to help and said that an acquaintance of his would contact the woman. The official passed the businesswoman’s contact information to the head of a civic organization and instructed him to meet with her.

<picture></picture>PHOTO: Odesa Regional Prosecutor’s Office

At the meeting, the accomplice named a price—36,000 hryvnias. According to him, the amount depended on the area of the structure to be demolished. He also promised that the consumer protection agency would not inspect the establishment for a year.

In May, near one of the supermarkets in the Khadzhibey district, the woman handed over 25,000 hryvnias to the head of the NGO. He received another 11,000 hryvnias a few months later.

As clarified by the police press service, the official is 50 years old. He worked as the chief specialist of the department responsible for temporary structures and street vending, and had the authority to issue orders for the demolition of such structures. His accomplice is 58 years old and heads a local trade organization.

According to police, the bribe amount was calculated at a rate of 1,000 hryvnias per square meter of the temporary structure. In exchange for this money, the entrepreneurs were promised not only that their kiosk would be spared but also that there would be no inspections by the relevant city council department for a year.

After the second handover of money, both men were detained. The court ordered them to be held in custody with the right to post bail: 266,240 hryvnias for the 50-year-old official and 832,000 hryvnias for the 58-year-old organization head.

Both posted bail. The court also suspended the official from his position, and he subsequently resigned of his own accord.

During searches, police seized funds that, according to their findings, were obtained unlawfully, as well as other cash, including foreign currency. The court placed a freeze on all seized funds.

Under this charge, both defendants face up to ten years in prison. 

In July, Intent reported on the arrest ofa city hallofficial on bribery charges.

Ірина Глухова