A suspected large-scale scheme of embezzlement of budget funds allocated for the construction and repair of protective structures has been exposed in the Mykolaiv region. This involves systematic abuse during the implementation of projects in the Voznesensky district, where money intended for the safety of the population during wartime could have been directed to the benefit of affiliated private structures.
According to sources, the leadership of the Voznesensk District State Administration plays a key role in the scheme. The central figure is said to be the head of the Voznesensk District State Administration, Oleksandr Kukuruza, who is linked to ensuring that pre-determined companies win tenders. It was these companies that received the largest contracts for the construction and repair of shelters.
The total amount of contracts acquired by three companies — First Ukrainian Construction LLC, Gospodar-2 LLC, and Golnest LLC — exceeds 600 million hryvnias. All of these contracts were concentrated within one district, which in itself raises questions about competition and transparency of procedures.
According to available information, the ties between the leadership of the RDA and the contractors are both family and political-business in nature. In particular, the owner of LLC "First Ukrainian Construction" Serhiy Tkachenko is related to the head of the Voznesensk RDA: their wives are sisters. It was this company, without previous relevant experience, that received contracts worth about 230 million hryvnias exclusively in the Voznesensk district. Signs of overpricing of construction materials by millions of hryvnias were recorded for individual objects.
Another company, Golnest LLC, is associated with Volodymyr Podolyan, whom sources call a party member and a close associate of the head of the Regional State Administration. This company received over 120 million hryvnias for work on repairing shelters.
A separate element of the scheme, according to sources, is financial control over the infrastructure. It is reported that Oleksandr Kukuruza owns a controlling stake in PJSC Pervomaiska MPMK. It is from this company that contractors are forced to rent construction equipment, which creates a closed cycle of redistribution of budget funds to controlled assets.
The mechanism for implementing the scheme, according to the interlocutors, was built through the customers of the work - in particular, the heads of education departments. The tender documentation created discriminatory conditions that effectively made it impossible for third-party companies to participate. There is also talk of falsifying certificates of experience, using insider information for the prompt submission of proposals, and formally rejecting competitors' applications.
According to sources, a separate role in the operation of the scheme could have been played by regional officials — in particular, representatives of the regional military administration, the urban planning department, tax authorities, and law enforcement agencies, who ensured the lack of an adequate response to numerous signals of violations.
The result is a possible misuse of funds intended for the protection of civilians during martial law. According to the interlocutors, the scale of the scheme suggests not individual abuses, but an organized system with a clear division of roles.
