The number of prosecutors with disabilities exceeded the national average

In the prosecutor's office, the number of people with disabilities can be three times higher than the national average, and among the management staff, this figure reaches 38%. In 2023, UAH 288 million was spent on prosecutors' pensions.

This was reported by Ekonomichna Pravda.

A major scandal has erupted in Ukraine: prosecutors are registering fictitious disabilities to receive payments. Among those involved are law enforcement officers from the south of the country and heads of medical and social expert commissions. It has become known how many prosecutors have the status of persons with disabilities.

In early October 2024, 100 thousand dollars, forged medical documents, and lists of people who evaded service with their names and fictitious diagnoses were found in the office of Tetiana Krupa, head of the Khmelnytskyi Regional Medical and Social Expert Commission (MSEC).

After this case, the detentions of heads of regional MSECs across the country began.

For example, law enforcement officers recently searched the home of the head of the Mykolaiv Medical and Social Expert Commission (MSEC) and her son as part of an investigation into a mobilization evasion scheme. During the searches, $450,000 in cash and a collection of jewelry were seized.

The journalists analyzed the court verdicts and found that despite numerous investigations and proven cases, not a single MSEK member was imprisoned. Most received only fines or suspended sentences. This attitude may be due to the fact that some prosecutors received disabilities from the aforementioned head of the MSEC and local regional council member from the Servant of the People party, Krupa. Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin 's office promised to check not only the Khmelnytsky Prosecutor's Office, but also other units.

On October 20, President Zelenskyy decides to convene a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council, demanding a response from law enforcement to the situation with fake disabilities, particularly among prosecutors.

According to the analysis of 8,070 prosecutors' declarations identified in 2023, a significant number of prosecutors indicated the availability of pension payments, which may indicate a disability. In particular, among the senior staff, this figure reaches 38%, which is significantly higher than the average in other law enforcement agencies. One in five indicated in their declarations that they receive pension payments.

The increased share of pensioners among prosecutors compared to other law enforcement agencies and the country as a whole has its explanation. The fact is that prosecutors have the right to retire on the basis of seniority, regardless of age, provided they have worked for 25 years, at least 15 of which were spent in the prosecution service. Their pension is 60% of their monthly salary, but cannot exceed 10 subsistence minimums (UAH 29,200).

Only about 10% of the recipients of pensions under the special law "On the Prosecutor's Office" receive them on the basis of disability. Rank-and-file prosecutors indicated receiving a pension in only 19% of their declarations, while among senior staff (heads and deputy heads of prosecutor's offices) this is the case in 38% of cases.

The average pension of a prosecutor is 199 thousand hryvnias per year, or about 16.6 thousand hryvnias per month. In addition, the availability of disability pensions provides advantages in employment, transfer between positions and reduces the risk of dismissal, which makes solving this problem difficult.

The availability of disability pensions for prosecutors has become not only a moral but also a financial problem, which cost UAH 288 million in 2023.

Based on the analysis of law enforcement declarations, a list of 15 heads of regional prosecutor's offices who receive the largest pensions was also compiled. Thus, three officials in the Odesa Regional Prosecutor's Office receive a pension, and five in the Mykolaiv Regional Prosecutor's Office.

Due to the facts of abuses in the prosecution system, Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin announced that he was resigning from his post. The Prosecutor General stated that he believes that the position of the President of Ukraine is absolutely correct that not only should all unlawful decisions on disability be canceled, but also clear legislative and organizational changes should be made, and that there should be personal and political responsibility.

Анна Бальчінос