NABU and SAPO transfer case of criminal organization, to which Odesa Mayor Trukhanov belonged, to court. INFOGRAPHICS
The National Anti-Corruption Bureau and the Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office have sent to court the case of a criminal organisation that caused losses of UAH 689 million to the local community of Odesa.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to the NABU press service.
Activities of a criminal organisation
It is noted that among the 11 accused are the current mayor of Odesa, Hennadii Trukhanov, a number of officials of the Odesa City Council, the head of the enterprise and others.
According to the investigation, the members of the criminal organisation, in collusion with others, developed a mechanism for the illegal appropriation of local budget funds and land of the Odesa territorial community for its further transfer for construction. As a result of these actions, in 2016-2019, the local community lost at least six land plots with a total area of 15.9 hectares and UAH 131 million, which Odesa City Hall officials illegally overpaid for when purchasing non-residential property on the site, which was allegedly planned to be used to expand the cemetery. The total amount of damage caused by the examination is UAH 689 million.
"The scheme, in particular, provided for the lease of the territorial community's land for construction to predetermined companies without a tender. At the same time, the developers paid the money, the real market value of the development right that the community was supposed to receive, on the basis of "conceptual contracts" to the criminal organization. The same organization, through its controlled persons in the Odesa City Council, ensured the adoption of the "necessary" decision to lease a particular plot with the right to build (superficies) for virtually nothing," the statement said.
It is reported that the criminal organisation strictly adhered to secrecy and information security measures and used counterintelligence techniques.
The NABU and the SAPO found that the recruitment of new members of the criminal organisation was carried out with the use of a polygraph. During the examination, the polygraph was used to ask questions about affiliation or cooperation with law enforcement agencies. In their communication, the members of the criminal organisation used secure communications, held meetings in rooms with enhanced security measures, used special equipment to extract information from electronic communications, etc.
Stages of the investigation
Representatives of law enforcement agencies and local authorities were involved in the criminal activity. In exchange for making relevant decisions in favour of the criminal organisation, some of them received illegal benefits in the form of apartments in new buildings.
The criminal organisation was exposed in October 2021, and the investigation was completed in August 2023. The defence reviewed the case file until December 2024.
In July 2023, the materials concerning one of the participants in the crime, the former prosecutor of Odesa region, were separated into a separate proceeding, which was sent to court in September this year.
