Kherson convicts deputy for misappropriation of funds during water supply system repair

Andriy Spitsyn, a member of the Bilozersk Village Council, was convicted of embezzlement during the repair of the water supply system. The court found him guilty of overstating the cost of the work and signing fictitious acts.

This was reported by Anti-Corruption Dimension.

In Kherson, a deputy of the Bilozersk Village Council, Andriy Spitsyn, was convicted in absentia for embezzling almost 200 thousand hryvnias during the repair of the water supply in the village of Tomyna Balka. According to the investigation, the official twice overestimated the cost of the work, signed fictitious acts, and caused the community losses of UAH 195,000.

On September 8, the Kherson City Court passed a verdict in a special proceeding in absentia. Spitsyn represented Blahoustriy Plus LLC, which had two contracts for the overhaul of the water supply system on Gagarin and Rabocha streets. The total amount of the contracts exceeded UAH 450 thousand.

Andriy Spitsyn. PHOTO: file.most.ks.ua

The court found that the deputy supervised the work of employees, signed certificates of completion and financial documents, but used low-quality materials and did not perform all the work envisaged, officially registering it as completed. This allowed him to transfer funds to the contractor's accounts that significantly exceeded the actual costs.

Thanks to the forged documents, in August and September 2019, the overpayment amounted to more than UAH 48 thousand under the first contract and UAH 146 thousand under the second contract. Spitsyn's actions were classified as misappropriation of property through abuse of office.

The MP was in hiding for a long time, so summonses to appear in court were published in the Uriadovyi Kurier and on the websites of the Prosecutor General's Office and the Kherson City Court. The court considered the case in his absence with the provision of a defense counsel.

Spitsyn was sentenced to three years in prison and a three-year restriction on holding positions related to organizational, administrative, or administrative and economic functions in government and local government. At the same time, another proceeding on charges of treason is pending against the MP.

In other corruption cases against MPs and officials, the decisions were closed. For example, the court terminated the proceedings against Oleksandr Sytnikov, a member of the Ochakiv City Council, due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. He was accused of involvement in the illegal export of seized grain worth over UAH 14 million.

Also in Odesa, the court closed the case against the former deputy director of the Odesa port, who was accused of negligence: the official allowed a private company to use state warehouses for free.

Анна Бальчінос