22 October 2026
(PHOTO: National Police)
In the Odesa region, the head of a department at one of the village councils was caught extorting $30,000 in exchange for facilitating the purchase of municipal land. The official was detained while receiving the money.
This was reported by the Main Directorate of the National Police in Odesa Oblast.
Currently, the 42-year-old official has been notified that she is suspected of corruption. She is charged with extortion and receiving an unlawful benefit. The penalty under this article provides for 5 to 10 years of imprisonment, along with disqualification from holding certain positions or engaging in certain activities for up to three years, and confiscation of property.
At the request of the prosecutor’s office, the suspect was placed in pretrial detention with the option of posting bail of over 1.3 million hryvnias and has been suspended from her position.
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According to the case file, the official demanded 30,000 U.S. dollars in exchange for assisting a man in purchasing a 0.09-hectare plot of land that is municipally owned. A local entrepreneur planned to use the land to build a café.
In exchange for this sum, the official was to ensure that the matter was placed on the agenda of the next session of the village council, scheduled for November 2026, and to facilitate a favorable decision.
According to the Land Code of Ukraine, the right to own or lease state- or municipally-owned land for business purposes must be acquired exclusively on a competitive basis (through land auctions), except for clearly defined exceptions (for example, the privatization of land under real estate that has already been purchased).
Юлія Калабайда