Prosecutor dismissed for bribery in Odesa region

The Qualification and Disciplinary Commission of Prosecutors has decided to dismiss Elvia Kerimova from the post of prosecutor of the Chornomorsk District Prosecutor's Office in Odesa region.

According to the commission's press service, this is a case in which the prosecutor's accomplice was a police investigator.

The prosecutor refused to give any explanations during the internal investigation and pre-trial investigation. He did not come to the Qualification and Disciplinary Commission of Prosecutors and repeatedly asked to postpone the consideration of the complaint. In particular, he did not appear for the consideration of the complaint, referring to his participation in a court hearing in the Odesa Court of Appeal, where he appealed the decision to remove him from office. He also did not respond to the commission's request and thus did not exercise his right to provide explanations.

In early March, the Chornomorsk City Court of Odesa Region approved a plea agreement between the prosecutor and a police investigator accused of taking a bribe.

According to the case file, in July 2025, a traffic accident occurred in Chornomorsk: a moped collided with a car and a passenger on the moped was injured. The convict went to the scene, drew up a report and launched a pre-trial investigation. Prosecutors took part in the investigation, and the group's senior officer decided to earn extra money by taking a bribe from the car driver. To do this, he engaged a police investigator. They demanded USD 800 from the driver for expediting investigative and procedural actions in the criminal proceedings.

They also demanded a bribe of USD 7,000 to avoid being found guilty of the accident and to return the car to him. The driver was supposed to give the money to a lawyer, who, according to the court, was unaware of the scheme.

All of this continued until October 2025 - on October 8, after receiving $7,000, law enforcement officers detained the policeman. And in January 2026, the policeman decided to enter into a plea agreement. He pledged to give truthful incriminating testimony regarding the criminal offenses charged against him and others.

The former police officer was sentenced to five years' imprisonment with a one-year disqualification from working in law enforcement, but the actual term was replaced with a three-year probationary period in agreement with the prosecutor.

Кирило Бойко