Indictment against RSA Head and official sent to court
SAPO Prosecutors have filed an indictment to the High Anti-Corruption Court against the Head of one of the regional state administrations and an official of the same executive body. Both are accused of receiving an improper advantage in a particularly large amount. The actions of the accused fall under Part 4 Art. 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (acceptance of an offer, promise, or receipt of illegal benefit by an official).
According to the investigation, in the spring of 2020, the Head of the regional state administration decided to obtain an improper advantage from the head of the main department of one of the executive bodies in the region. The official did not want to carry out the crime alone and involved an associate - the Head of one of the units of the same regional state administration. The latter, following the instructions of the RSA Head, voiced the requirement to pay UAH 110 thousand every month, otherwise, the official was going to face problems, in particular, his conformity to the occupied position would be questioned.
The accused later extorted an even bigger amount - 15% of the official monthly turnover of government agencies subordinated to the main department of the executive branch. Given the indicators of previous periods, it made the amount of about UAH 1.8 million.
The scheme stipulated that the funds must be transferred in tranches. The first - UAH 100 thousand - was transferred in early June 2020, which was documented as part of the pre-trial investigation. Upon receiving the second tranche of UAH 250 thousand, the RSA Head and his accomplice were exposed red-handed and detained as part of a joint operation by NABU, SAPO, National Police, and SSU.
Large amounts of cash of unknown origin (UAH 4,5 million, USD 320 thousand, EUR 24 thousand) were found and seized during searches at the office and residences of the detained officials.
NABU was investigating the above facts from May to November 2020.
In June 2020, the RSA Head and official were notified of suspicion.
In November of the same year, the case materials were disclosed for review.
According to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is considered not-guilty in the commission of a crime and cannot be subject to criminal punishment until he or she is found guilty by court.