Kherson region allows arrest of former director of garment factory

The former director of a garment factory from Kherson region is suspected of collaboration. She did not just participate in the "deputy" elections, but actually legitimized the occupiers and built local trust in Russia.

This is evidenced by the decision of the Central District Court of Mykolaiv.

The court considered the motion of the SBU investigator to impose a pre-trial restraint on Tatiana Novodranova, a resident of Oleshky, who is suspected of collaboration. The woman is charged under part one of Article 28 and part five of Article 111-1 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

According to the investigation, the woman took part in illegal elections to the so-called "Council of Deputies of the Aleshok Municipal District of the first convocation" organized by the occupation authorities and their controlled structures.

On September 10, 2023, as a result of these illegal elections, she was declared an "elected deputy" from the United Russia party. No later than March 26, 2024, Novodranova assumed her "deputy" powers, heading the Commission on Budgetary Issues and Investments as part of the illegally created government body. From March 2024 to January 2025, the suspect systematically participated in public events organized by the occupiers.

In particular, in October 2024, she visited the Brylivka school, where she participated in the distribution of school diaries, which was intended to demonstrate the new government's concern for education and to form a positive attitude towards the aggressor state among children.

In November 2024, she held a personal reception of citizens in the village of Brylivka, accepting appeals from local residents regarding social support, pensions and other local issues. In December, the suspect held lessons and meetings in educational institutions dedicated to the Constitution Day of the Russian Federation. On January 27, 2025, she attended the public event "Leningrad and the Holocaust: Two Events, One Date" in the village of Tarasivka, where her participation was aimed at popularizing the symbols and historical narratives of the aggressor state.

On January 6, 2026, the SBU notified the woman of suspicion. She was also put on the wanted list. The materials of the petition confirm that the suspect is currently in the temporarily occupied territory, in particular in the village of Zaliznyi Port, Skadovsk district, Kherson region.

The validity of the suspicion is confirmed by numerous data: publications and photos of her posing in front of the Russian flag in the status of "deputy", her participation in receiving citizens, lessons and public events; several witnesses recognized her at the events. The court granted the investigator's motion and imposed a pre-trial restraint on the suspect in the form of detention without setting a term or amount of bail.

According to the Most dossier, Tetiana Novodranova was born on October 23, 1977. Until 2014, she worked as an accountant, and later headed the companies of the late pro-Russian politician Oleksiy Zhuravko - the Yunist garment factory, the Chaika 2016 enterprise, and the Kherson Med-City medical center. She sold some of the products of Chaika 2016 to local authorities and the National Police of Kherson region. In December 2022, the companies were re-registered in accordance with Russian standards.

Also in January, the SBU announced a new suspicion against pro-Russian blogger Dmytro Taran from Kakhovka. Investigators believe that he worked as a mouthpiece for Kremlin propaganda, hiding behind the fictitious status of an "intelligence officer."

Анна Бальчінос