SSU exposes high-ranking official of Odesa regional administration who stole over UAH 7 million

The Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) has exposed a high-ranking official from the Odesa Regional Military Administration (ORMA) who embezzled over 7 million hryvnias in the construction of rural clinics. This information was reported by the SSU press service on June 27.

The perpetrators misappropriated nearly 7.5 million hryvnias of state funds and disrupted the construction of six outpatient clinics in remote villages of the region. The current head of the ORMA office in Odesa Oblast is involved in organizing this criminal scheme.

For his illegal activities, he engaged a construction company based in Kyiv, controlled by his friend, a current advisor to the mayor of Vysneve, Kyiv Oblast.

In 2020, due to the "assistance" of the Odesa official, this company won a tender for the construction of medical facilities in the southern region.

According to the contract signed, contractors were supposed to build six new rural outpatient clinics in Odesa Oblast. The company received a government budget advance of 16.9 million hryvnias for this project.

According to the case materials, scheme participants embezzled nearly half of this amount, leaving medical facility projects unfinished, even up to 50%. To facilitate financial manipulations, the organizers of the scheme artificially inflated the cost and scope of work, as well as provided false information in the reporting documentation. To carry out these financial manipulations, they also engaged two other officials from the Odesa ORMA.

SSU expertise confirmed the fact of unfinished construction and stolen money. Additionally, experts noted that the foundation of these facilities did not meet the established requirements and was hazardous.

During searches at the actual addresses of the scheme's participants, documents and other material evidence of illegal activities were found.

All participants in the criminal group have been informed of their suspicions. They face up to 12 years of imprisonment.