The court ordered the heads of Mykolaiv sports schools to remain in custody

The Mykolaiv Court of Appeals upheld the pretrial measures imposed on the directors of two local sports schools. The suspects are accused of embezzling more than 1.5 million hryvnias through fictitious employment.

This was reported by the publication MykVisti. 

The court issued the relevant rulings on November 2. 

As noted by the publication, in October, all three men were ordered to remain in custody with the possibility of posting bail. Specifically, the bail amount for Oleksandr Muncha and Oleg Mashkin was 832,000 hryvnias, and for Serhiy Kovhank —698,880 hryvnias.

The defense attorneys requested that the pretrial measures be changed to house arrest. They cited the suspects’ proper conduct during the proceedings, their family circumstances, and the lack of evidence supporting the risks cited by the investigators. In addition, the defense asked the court to release the suspects on personal recognizance. 

Oleksandr Munch, director of the “Peremoha” sports school, is currently free after posting bail, while Serhiy Kovhanko, head of the No. 6 Children’s and Youth Sports School of Olympic Reserve, and his deputy, Oleg Mashkin, remain in custody.

As reported by Intent, in March, a judge granted investigators access to bank documents in the case involving the fictitious employment of conscripts at the city’s sports facilities. According to law enforcement, the men may have been hired in exchange for bribes so they could secure deferments and avoid mobilization.

Also in May, the court imposed a preventive measure on Iryna Bondarenko, head of the Department of Physical Culture and Sports of the Mykolaiv City Council. She is also suspected of organizing a scheme for the fictitious employment of conscripts. 

Юлія Калабайда