Mykolaiv region seizes property of utility company for embezzlement

The property of a utility company was seized in Mykolaiv region after embezzlement was discovered. The investigation revealed numerous violations in procurement, as well as illegal payments to a dubious company.

This is evidenced by the ruling of the Southern Ukrainian Court.

In September 2024, criminal proceedings were initiated over possible abuse of office at the Graale utility company of the Yuzhnoukrainsk City Council. The investigation was prompted by a scheduled audit of the company's financial and economic activities conducted by specialists from the Southern Office of the State Audit Service in Mykolaiv Oblast.

The audit revealed serious irregularities in the activities of Graal, including a shortage of inventory worth about UAH 800,000. The missing materials included metal pipes, gearboxes, lamps and cables. In this regard, an audit report was drawn up, which was submitted to law enforcement agencies for further investigation.

The investigation found that the utility company had entered into a number of contracts with Stilet 1 LLC for the supply of goods and works, but without using open bidding through the procurement system, which is a violation of the law.

In particular, in 2022, Graal entered into three contracts totaling more than UAH 675 thousand, as well as four contracts worth about UAH 284 thousand with this company, while reports on the concluded agreements were not published in the electronic procurement system.

Between 2022 and 2023, 38 direct contracts were concluded between Graal and Stilet 1 LLC, which were subsequently uploaded to the system.

During the pre-trial investigation, law enforcement officers temporarily accessed the documents and seized several payment orders, which showed more than UAH 5 million paid to the company without proper justification.

As a result, the judge ordered the seizure of the property and documents, which will remain in the custody of the police until the process is completed and all the circumstances of the case are examined.

The SBU found that officials of the self-supporting construction mechanization unit, in collusion with a private company, inflated the cost of lamps supplied to the city through intermediary firms, which allowed them to misappropriate money.

In addition, law enforcement officers uncovered a scheme to use"dead souls" in Mykolaiv region hospitals. Investigators are looking into possible fraud in local medical institutions, where medical records could have been forged for several years.

Анна Бальчінос