More than 550 thousand "slipped" from the budget: a city council official is suspected of employing relatives-"ghosts"

In Mykolaiv, law enforcement officers exposed the head of one of the departments of the Mykolaiv City Council, who is suspected of organizing a scheme of fictitious employment of people in the communal institutions subordinate to her. The April 29, 2026 report was issued by the Mykolaiv Oblast police. According to the investigation, it concerns both the official’s acquaintances and her relatives, who allegedly did not go to work but received salaries from budget funds.

The illegal activity was uncovered by investigators of Police Department No.1 of the Mykolaiv District Police Department with operational support from the strategic investigations department in Mykolaiv Oblast of the National Police’s Department of Strategic Investigations and under the procedural supervision of the Mykolaiv City District Prosecutor’s Office.

According to the investigation, since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation into Ukraine, the department head organized a scheme of fictitious employment of individuals at the communal institutions of Mykolaiv. Local media report that this concerns the head of the sports department, Iryna Bondarenko, however the police statement itself did not name the suspect.

• In the Mykolaiv City Council’s sports department, conscripts were employed for money
• Searches in Mykolaiv sports: mobilization exemptions could have become “merchandise”

According to the police, the official gave oral instructions to the directors of the subordinate institutions. After that the “employees” were allegedly registered in positions but in fact did not show up at their workplaces and did not perform their duties. Nevertheless, they were paid salaries from the budget. The investigation asserts that the head disposed of these funds at her own discretion, having access to the relevant accounts. During sanctioned searches at the department and at the official’s place of residence, law enforcement officers seized documents, draft records, mobile phones, bank cards and other items that may be evidence in the criminal proceedings.

The amount of damage caused to the city budget has so far been determined at more than 550 thousand hryvnias.

Investigators, under the procedural guidance of the prosecutor’s office, notified the official of suspicion under Part 4 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – embezzlement of another’s property by an official through abuse of official position, committed under martial law, on a large scale. Under this article she faces up to 8 years of imprisonment with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for up to 3 years.

A decision on the preventive measure for the suspect is currently being considered. Law enforcement is also checking the possible involvement of other persons in the unlawful actions. The pretrial investigation is ongoing.

This story is especially infuriating against the backdrop of the war: while the city is constantly searching for money for critical needs, and people collect aid for the military and the victims, in the communal system, according to the investigation, “dead souls” may have existed for years on salaries paid from the budget.

Earlier we wrote:

• A village head in Mykolaiv Oblast will be tried: signed acts without verification — the community lost UAH 630,000
• Winter uniforms “ate” the budget: in Mykolaiv Oblast the mayor will face trial for embezzlement of over UAH 1.1 million
• Mykolaiv’s budget losses of UAH 1.2 million: the “purchase” of traffic lights ended up in court
• Millions on lamps: in Mykolaiv the organizers of a corruption scheme in the communal sector will be tried
• UAH 4.9 million on paper: in Mykolaiv Oblast a contractor “drew” the hospital renovation