ESBU detectives in the Chernivtsi region have exposed abuses by local council officials during the procurement of road repair services

 Detectives of the Economic Security Bureau of Ukraine in the Chernivtsi region have notified a department director and a public procurement specialist of a local council of suspicion. They are suspected of abuse of office during the procurement of road repair services.

The investigation established that the officials artificially changed the classification of road works to avoid funding restrictions prescribed by legislation during martial law.

The current repair of a city street was registered as "beautification services," which allowed the procurement to be carried out through a simplified procedure.

Furthermore, inflated prices for construction materials were included in the budget documentation. The cost of one cubic meter of crushed stone was set at nearly 2,000 UAH, while its market price was approximately 350 UAH.

Based on these calculations, a procurement was conducted via the Prozorro system, where the sole participant—an entrepreneur who offered an even higher price—emerged as the winner. Despite this, a contract exceeding UAH 18 million was concluded with him.

As a result of purchasing construction materials at prices nearly six times above market value, the territorial community suffered losses of UAH 3.4 million.

Currently, the officials have been notified of suspicion under Part 2 of Art. 28 and Part 2 of Art. 364 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (abuse of office committed by a group of persons in a prior conspiracy, resulting in grave consequences).

Procedural supervision is being carried out by the Chernivtsi Regional Prosecutor's Office.