Luxury brands, Mercedes and apartments: ex-official from Odesa caught on false declaration

Inconsistencies totaling 23 million hryvnias were found in the declaration of Oleksandra Smyrna, a former employee of the Odesa Regional State Administration. The woman faces criminal liability, and she has already resigned and moved abroad.

According to the National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption (NAPC), experts audited Smyrna's financial statements for 2022. She worked as a chief specialist in the Department of Information and Public Relations of the Odesa District State Administration.

The report indicates that in 2022 she received two apartments and a car space as a gift from her parents, but declared their value to be much lower or indicated outdated prices from the purchase and sale agreements. The Cartier watch, given by her father in 2022, was included in her declaration back in 2020, while the cost of the Rolex watch was overstated. A Dolce & Gabbana bag and a Yamaha synthesizer were declared as very expensive items, although in fact their price was much lower and not subject to declaration. A number of other valuables (Hublot watches, diamond earrings, handbags) have no documentary evidence of value at all.

The declaration indicates that she uses a Mercedes GLC car owned by her father, but the value was also overstated. She did not declare state aid "ePidderzhka" in the amount of UAH 6.5 thousand. The biggest violation was overstating the amount of cash tenfold: 550 thousand UAH, 400 thousand dollars and 200 thousand euros. Later, Smyrna stated that she had accidentally added two extra zeros, but these figures remained unchanged in her 2023 declaration.

The NACP will send an official notification of the violations, publish a certificate and offer Smyrna to submit a corrected declaration. The woman has now resigned from her position and moved abroad.

Her father, Serhiy Smyrnyi, holds a senior position at the State Hydrographic Service, has experience in the maritime industry and has worked in a number of public and private organizations.

Ірина Глухова