Odesa Official Charged with Abuse of Office in ₴600K Scam

Investigators of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi District Police Department in Odesa Oblast have sent to court an indictment against the head of the department of housing and communal services and improvement of one of the district's village councils, accused of abuse of office.

According to the press service of the Main Directorate of the National Police of Ukraine in Odesa Oblast, the official was supposed to purchase two dump trucks for the needs of the community at the average market price, for which the village council had allocated funds.

So he entered into a contract for the purchase of special equipment with an entrepreneur whose prices were many times higher. By making an economically disadvantageous decision and certifying the payment with his signature, the official enabled the seller of the vehicles to receive an unlawful benefit, which was transferred to the account in accordance with the contract.

According to the conclusion of the forensic economic evaluation, the amount of damage caused to the community amounted to over UAH 600 thousand.

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Video: National Police in Odesa region.

Based on the evidence collected, law enforcement officers charged the suspect with abuse of office, i.e. intentional abuse of office to obtain any unlawful benefit for another individual, use of office by an official against the interests of the service, which caused significant damage to the legally protected interests of the state. Also, at the request of law enforcement officers, the man was removed from his position.

The maximum penalty that the offender faces for the crime is up to three years in prison with disqualification to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for the same period, with a fine of up to UAH 12,750.

Earlier, police detained the chief accountant of one of Odesa's utility companies on suspicion of embezzling more than a million hryvnias from the company's accounts by providing preferential loans to developers. According to the police, to conceal his illegal actions, the offender used the additional construction fund to pay off the borrowers' debts and embezzled their money. According to the results of the forensic economic examination, the offender illegally enriched himself by UAH 1 million 98 thousand 800 between 2018 and 2020.

Кирило Бойко