The State Bureau of Investigation has completed a pre-trial investigation into the case of price gouging in the state procurement of tablets for the State Emergency Service unit. An indictment has been sent to the court against two officials who, according to the investigation, caused losses to the state of over 7 million hryvnias without proper verification.
The defendants in the case were the deputy head of one of the divisions of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine and the deputy head of the department of the same division. In September 2023, they held an open tender for the purchase of 2,000 tablets for a total amount of over 50 million hryvnias.
Despite the fact that only one company participated in the tender, officials did not question the proposed price, which, as it turned out later, was 30% higher than the market price. A state examination confirmed the fact of overpayment.
According to the investigation, the negligence of the officials led to significant financial losses. According to Part 2 of Article 367 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, they face up to five years in prison.
The Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office is conducting the procedural management of the case. The court must decide whether the officials' negligence was an accidental mistake or a cover-up for collusion with the sole bidder.
