State registrar Serhiy Zotkin has found himself at the center of a large-scale corruption scandal: his activities are associated with the systematic legalization of unauthorized construction, manipulation of the area of objects and making illegal changes to the technical characteristics of real estate. According to public activists, Zotkin acted under the direct supervision of the head of the Eastern Interregional Department of the Ministry of Justice Iryna Svystun and Kharkiv lawyer Valentyn Melnyk, which effectively turned a state function into a tool for private earnings.
The investigation shows that the registrar systematically carried out so-called "black registrations": legalizing unauthorized extensions, increasing the area of the objects several times and making changes to the technical characteristics without any legal grounds. Such activities violate the basic norms of the Law "On Regulation of Urban Planning Activity", according to which changes in the area or characteristics can be made only on the basis of a declaration of readiness of the object or decisions of the State Urban Planning and Development Agency.
One of the most telling cases was an unfinished construction site in the town of Pisochyn. In early February 2024, a notary registered its sale in a state of readiness of 70.5%. But a month and a half later, Zotkin made a new entry, registering the same site as fully completed, and increased its area to 515.4 sq. m. No documents on the completion of construction, declarations or decisions of regulatory authorities were submitted.
A similar situation was recorded with an apartment on Kandaurova Street in Kharkiv: the initial area was 26.8 sq. m, but after the intervention of the registrar it “grew” to 74.7 sq. m. An analysis of registration actions shows the systematic nature of these violations: according to applications No. 62763431, No. 62763419 and No. 62763370, the areas of the objects were increased three to four times exclusively on the basis of technical passports, which is expressly prohibited by law.
Sources claim that Zotkin's activities would not have been possible without the participation of Iryna Svystun and lawyer Melnyk, who created an informal "vertical control" over registrars. Under this scheme, jobs for state registrars were actually sold, and the officials themselves paid a monthly fee for the opportunity to perform their duties. A significant part of the registrations was carried out not in local government bodies, but in a private office at 96 Sumska Street.
A separate role in the scheme was allegedly played by lawyer Melnyk's godfather, Justice Ministry official Volyk, who provided political protection and influenced personnel decisions.
Investigators emphasize that the described actions constitute not only administrative violations, but also signs of criminal offenses, including abuse of office and entering knowingly false information into the state register.
