In the Odessa region, a boarding school employee was accused of embezzling 350,000 from her deceased students

A former employee of a psychoneurological residential care facility in the Odesa region will stand trial on charges of embezzling more than 350,000 hryvnias from the bank accounts of deceased residents. According to investigators, the woman misappropriated funds belonging to 16 patients.

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

Prosecutors from the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi District Prosecutor’s Office have filed an indictment with the court against a former social worker at one of the psychoneurological residential care facilities in the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi District. She is charged with embezzlement and misappropriation of another person’s property under Part 4 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

According to the investigation, the woman had been working at the facility since 2019. As part of her job duties, she had access to the residents’ bank cards, helped them manage their social benefits, and was responsible for closing their bank accounts after their deaths.

Investigators believe that in early 2024, following the death of one of the patients, the accused decided to take possession of her funds. Over the course of a week, she withdrew 10,000 hryvnias twice from the deceased’s bank card, and later another 5,900 hryvnias.

Law enforcement officials note that between 2024 and 2025, the woman allegedly systematically withdrew money from the accounts of her deceased patients using ATMs in various towns in the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi district, and also used their bank cards to make purchases in stores.

According to the investigation, most of the victims had no close relatives who could monitor the movement of funds in their accounts. In total, law enforcement officials claim, the accused misappropriated funds belonging to 16 patients, and the amount of the losses exceeded 350,000 hryvnias.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the potential offense was discovered during an internal audit conducted by the boarding school’s administration. Following this, the facility’s director contacted law enforcement. At that time, the woman was no longer employed at the facility.

Андрій Колісніченко