Restoration of the Ukrainian Theater in Odesa results in arrest of the head of MP's company

In Odesa, law enforcement officers uncovered an alleged scheme to embezzle budget funds during the restoration of a historic theater building. The head of the contracting firm is suspected of falsifying documents and misappropriating money, which is why she was taken into custody.

This was reported by the Center for Public Investigations with reference to the decision of the Prymorskyi District Court of Odesa.

According to the investigation, in 2021, the Obltransbud utility company announced a tender for the overhaul and restoration of the facades of the Vasylko Academic Ukrainian Music and Drama Theater in Odesa with an expected cost of more than UAH 33 million. After the estimate was revised, it turned out that some of the work had already been completed, so the purchase price was reduced to UAH 27.3 million.

The tender was held through the Prozorro system in the format of open bidding. Two companies took part in the tender - PE TEKO and GRAD-Stroy LLC. The winner of the electronic auction was the latter company, which offered UAH 26.5 million. In July 2021, a contract was signed with the company to perform the work.

According to law enforcement, after signing the contract, the company's director organized a scheme to illegally obtain budget funds. She allegedly entered false information in the certificates of completion and certificates on the basis of which payments were made.

In particular, in December 2021, an act was signed for more than UAH 9.3 million. At the end of the year, these funds were transferred to the contractor in two payments.

Law enforcement officers found out that some of the money was received unreasonably due to overstatement of the scope and cost of work. According to their estimates, the losses due to poor-quality restoration amounted to more than UAH 490 thousand, which were probably misappropriated by the company's head.

At the end of March 2026, the woman was notified of being suspected of misappropriation of property by abuse of office on a large scale and forgery.

During the trial, the suspect and the defense denied the charges, claiming violations during the examinations and incorrect determination of the amount of damage.

However, the court upheld the position of the investigation and imposed a restraint measure in the form of detention for 60 days - until May 25, 2026. At the same time, the court determined the possibility of posting bail in the amount of UAH 99,840, after which the suspect will be able to be released subject to procedural obligations.

According to YouControl, the founder of the company is Vadym Teplitskyi, a deputy of the Odesa Regional Council, and the head is Tetiana Titova.

Back in 2022, Intent wrote that law enforcement officers were checking the quality of restoration work at the Ukrainian Theater, which was carried out by a company associated with the regional council deputy. At the time, the investigation concerned agreements between Obltransbud and Bild-Pro LLC, which was headed by Teplytskyi.

According to the investigation, the repair work on the building of the V.S. Vasylko Odesa Academic Ukrainian Music and Drama Theater was performed by this company inappropriately. In general, the story of the theater's restoration has been going on since 2016, and the total cost of the work has exceeded tens of millions of hryvnias.

Анна Бальчінос