Odesa Appoints Volodymyr Kharishchak as New Municipal Security Director

Odesa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov has appointed Volodymyr Kharishchak as the director of the municipal security department of the Odesa City Council.

The relevant order was published by the press service of the municipality.

The grounds for the appointment were Volodymyr Kharishchak's own application and the submission of Deputy Mayor Valeriy Silin.

The new director of the department was also granted the eighth rank of local government official. In fact, Volodymyr Kharishchak lost his status as an acting director. He has been heading the department since the beginning of March 2025, when Hennadii Trukhanov appointed him to this position instead of the dismissed Viktor Kuznetsov.

Viktor Kuznetsov and his deputy, Yuriy Savchenko, are suspected of abusing procurement for the Defense Forces. According to the prosecutor's office, they purchased tactical clothing and armor plates from the company for the terrorist defense and volunteer units of Odesa at prices that were twice as high as the real ones. As a result, the overpayment amounted to UAH 3.9 million.

In August 2024, Trukhanov temporarily suspended them from their duties, but in November, Kuznetsov returned to his duties.

In July, the Kyiv District Court of Odesa imposed a pre-trial restraint on Kuznetsov, who is suspected of forgery and abuse of power. At that time, the mayor was left with an alternative in the form of bail of 2.3 million hryvnias, reports the Center for Public Investigations, citing the press service of the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office. According to the agency, Viktor Kuznetsov's deputy was also sent to a pre-trial detention center.

Before that, law enforcement officers searched the municipal security department in Odesa City Council.

Кирило Бойко