Prosecutor's Office opens proceedings over overpayment for school equipment in Odesa

Prosecutors of the regional prosecutor's office have served a notice of suspicion to a former official of a district municipal institution that ensures the financial and economic activities of educational institutions in Odesa.

According to the press service of the prosecutor's office, the former official is charged with negligence that caused serious consequences.

According to the investigation, in May 2024, she was responsible for public procurement. The official determined the price and organized the purchase of television and audiovisual equipment for educational institutions in one of the city's districts.

In the electronic public procurement system, the woman posted an announcement of open bidding for the purchase of 106 multimedia complexes. These included interactive whiteboards and multimedia projectors.

As a result of the open bidding, the municipal institution of the Odesa City Council and the company entered into a contract for the supply of equipment worth more than UAH 6.8 million. At the same time, investigators claim that the purchase was made at inflated prices that did not correspond to the market level. As a result of these actions, the official caused more than UAH 2 million in damage to the local community.

According to the Prozorro system, the procurement that coincides with the one indicated by the prosecutor's office in terms of time period, procurement amount, subject of procurement and the amount of multimedia equipment to be purchased is the one conducted on May 16, 2024 by the Center for Financing and Economic Activity of Educational Institutions of the Peresypskyi District of Odesa.

The procurement was conducted in the format of open bidding, with the peculiarity that there were two participants: individual entrepreneur Anatolii Yaremenko and Didactylab Limited Liability Company. Despite the fact that the sole proprietor offered a more favorable price of UAH 5.9 million, his offer was rejected as not meeting the terms of the technical specification and other requirements for the subject of the tender documentation.

The winner was determined to be an LLC that offered its products for UAH 6 million 897.3 thousand. According to the YouControl service, Didacticlab LLC was registered in 2019 in Kyiv. The owner is Yulia Bondarenko. The company has repeatedly won tenders in Odesa, often single-handedly. For example, in June 2024, the Center for Financing and Economic Activity of Educational Institutions of the Peresypskyi District of Odesa held a tender to select a company to supply equipment for classrooms in schools. It was about 1,658 pieces of equipment. The winner was the only bidder, Didacticlab Limited Liability Company.

Кирило Бойко