In Odesa, a contractor embezzled the budget for ventilation and heaters for a lyceum

The repair of a shelter in one of Odesa's lyceums resulted not in the renewal of the protective structure, but in criminal proceedings due to the overstatement of the cost of the equipment. The court found the contractor guilty of embezzlement and forgery.

This was reported by Intent with reference to the verdict of the Peresypskyi District Court of Odesa.

The defendant in the case was a local entrepreneur who was accused of misappropriating budget funds and forgery during the repair of the protective structure of an educational institution.

According to the investigation, it was a contract for the overhaul of the simplest shelter at Odesa Lyceum No. 14. In November 2023, a contract worth more than UAH 570 thousand was concluded between the educational institution, a municipal institution and an individual entrepreneur. The work was to be completed by the end of the year.

The investigation found that at the stage of preparing the estimate documentation, the contractor provided false information about materials and equipment. In particular, the documents specified more expensive equipment models than those actually installed in the shelter.

For example, instead of the declared electric heaters of one brand, cheaper counterparts of the Termia brand were actually used. A similar situation was with the heat recovery ventilation unit: the estimate did not specify the model, but the installed equipment was different from what could be assumed from the documentation. The investigators concluded that the amount of overpayment amounted to UAH 330.6 thousand.

Among the violations found were overpayments for electrical panels, lamps, sockets, switches, mounting elements, and heaters. However, the largest overpayment, according to the case, was for a ventilation system with a recuperator - more than UAH 285 thousand. Despite this, the customer transferred the entire contract amount to the contractor - more than UAH 570 thousand of budget funds.

The entrepreneur was charged with misappropriation of property by abuse of office under martial law and forgery. During the trial, he pleaded guilty in full, stating that he had relied on unscrupulous subcontractors and signed the acts of work performed. The defendant also said that he had fully compensated for the losses. This fact was confirmed by the victim's side.

As a result, the court approved the plea agreement between the prosecutor and the defendant. The businessman was sentenced to five years in prison, and the defendant was sentenced to two years in prison for forgery. At the same time, the man was released from serving the actual sentence by the aggregate of punishments and probation, setting a one-year probationary period.

In addition, the court ordered the convict to reimburse the costs of the examination. The civil lawsuit to recover more than UAH 330 thousand was left without consideration, as the damages were reimbursed voluntarily before the verdict was passed.

Also in May, in Odesa region, BES detectives investigated alleged embezzlement of budget funds during the construction of shelters and repairs. According to the investigation, tens of millions of hryvnias could have been embezzled through fictitious contracts and inflated prices.

Анна Бальчінос