In the Kherson region, a child welfare official will stand trial for ignoring abuse at an orphanage

In the Kherson region, the head of the district child welfare service will stand trial. For years, she failed to take measures to protect children in a family-type orphanage from sexual abuse.

This was reported by the Kherson Regional Prosecutor’s Office.

The official is charged with official negligence resulting in serious consequences. Juvenile prosecutors have already submitted the indictment against her to the court.

According to the investigation, one of the head of the service’s responsibilities was to monitor the living conditions and safety of children in family-type children’s homes.

Law enforcement officials determined that in one such family, children may have been subjected to sexual abuse by the foster father for years. However, according to the investigation, the official failed to take the necessary measures to protect them.

The foster father himself is currently in custody. He is accused of sexually abusing a minor ward, which, according to the prosecutor’s office, lasted several years.

The man is also charged with lewd acts against other underage girls in his care and possession of child pornography.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the head of the child welfare service was required to assess the threats to the children’s lives and health. She was also required to initiate a review of the situation by the commission on the protection of children’s rights, arrange for the removal of the children from the dangerous environment, and shut down the family-style children’s home.

According to the investigation, the official failed to take the necessary measures to protect the children.

In 2022, the family evacuated from the Kherson region to another region of Ukraine. After that, the defendant was supposed to contact the local child welfare service and report the criminal proceedings against the foster father.

According to the prosecutor’s office, she failed to do so as well.

The children were removed from the dangerous environment only after the prosecutor’s office intervened. They were subsequently placed under the supervision of appropriate specialists.

The official’s case will be heard in court. She is charged under Part 2 of Article 367 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine—official negligence resulting in serious consequences—and faces up to five years in prison.

As a reminder, in November 2025, the prosecutor’s office had already filed an indictment against the father-caretaker of this family-type home. Law enforcement officers detained the suspect in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, where the family-type children’s home had relocated after hostilities began. 

Ірина Глухова