In Dnipropetrovsk region, law enforcement revealed a criminal organization that embezzled nearly seven million hryvnias allocated for repairing school shelters.
This was reported by the Strategic Investigations Department of the National Police of Ukraine.
The group included the deputy head of one of the departments of the Samara City Council and a technical supervision engineer from a contracting company. The perpetrators organized a financial scheme using budget funds for the reconstruction of bomb shelters in four educational institutions, as stated in the report.
During 2023-2024, eight contracts were signed between the local government and the contractor for a total exceeding 16 million UAH. According to the terms, the company was to reconstruct the basements of three gymnasiums and one lyceum in Samara, reported the National Police.
These underground structures were intended to serve as shelters for children during air threats, according to the publication.
During the renovation, the technical supervision engineer inserted false data into the reporting documentation regarding the volume of work performed and the cost of materials used. The city official signed these documents, aware of their inaccuracies, as stated in the publication.
In some instances, the cost estimates were inflated by two times, reported the National Police.
According to expert assessments, the total damage to the state amounted to nearly 7 million UAH.
Police conducted authorized searches in Dnipropetrovsk region at the residences of the suspects and seized mobile phones, computer equipment, financial documents, bank cards, seals, cash, and rough notes.
The suspects have been charged. They face up to twelve years in prison with asset confiscation. Efforts are ongoing to identify other possible participants in the scheme for prosecution. The investigation is ongoing.
Reminder:
Earlier, the Cabinet of Ministers allocated an additional 272.5 million hryvnias to local communities for building shelters in educational institutions. A total of 185 projects are planned.
It was previously reported that a shelter was ordered for a school in Kharkiv that had been damaged and rebuilt for 145 million UAH at inflated prices.
It was noted that the prices of basic materials for shelters in Chuhuiv, Kharkiv region, exceed the market prices by 20-60%.
Earlier, tenders were announced in Kharkiv region for the construction of three anti-radiation shelters in schools with an expected cost of over 100 million UAH each.
In 2024, over 134 thousand procurements were completed through Prozorro under the code “Construction and current repair,” totaling 271.6 billion UAH, with 96.6% having only one participant.
