Mykolaiv Court Imposes House Arrest in Illegal Groundwater Extraction Case

A court in Mykolaiv has imposed a pre-trial restraint on a defendant in a case of illegal groundwater extraction. As part of a criminal group organized by a former deputy of Mykolaiv City Council, the woman extracted water and then sold it at drinking water points in the city.

According to the ruling of the Mykolaiv District Court, a petition for a preventive measure in the form of house arrest was considered against the suspect.

According to the investigation, a group of people, acting as part of an organized criminal group, carried out illegal extraction of groundwater in the Mykolaiv region. After extraction, the water was packaged and sold to the public under the guise of legitimate business.

The investigation established that the organizer of the criminal group was a former deputy of the Mykolaiv City Council. He involved people who had trusting and friendly relations with him, including his partner and old acquaintances.

In order to legalize the illegal business, the suspects registered Parm Invest LLC in the name of the organizer's partner and began using the H2O for the Whole Family trademark to cover up the illegal sale of groundwater.

They also provided logistics by hiring trucks to transport water, set up a production facility, and installed equipment, including generators, pumps, filtration systems, and an automatic packaging line.

In Mykolaiv, to implement their plan, the suspects organized a network of more than 20 drinking water outlets, as well as placed advertisements on billboards and engaged staff (administrators, accountants, salespeople, drivers) who were unaware of the company's illegal activities. According to the case, the two wells were equipped with powerful pumps that provided a daily volume of 247.2 cubic meters.

The court ruled to impose on the suspect a measure of restraint in the form of house arrest with a ban on leaving her place of residence until April 3, 2025. The pre-trial investigation is ongoing. If the suspect's guilt is proven in court, she faces up to six years in prison under Part 4 of Article 240 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine for illegal mining of mineral resources of national importance committed by an organized group.

Last year, there was a similar case in the city involving the sale of drinking water. There were dealers in Mykolaiv who decided to fake it. They collected purified water at free dispensing points and then sold it.

In January, an illegal sand mining quarry was discovered in Mykolaiv region. In the forest near the village of Mykhailo-Laryne, within the Voskresenska village community, a huge pit was found dug by black miners with tractors. It turned out that illegal sand mining had been going on for two years.

Анна Бальчінос