Another personnel and procedural scandal is brewing in the Kharkiv Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Defense of the Eastern Region. The focus is on the head of the department, Dmytro Verbytskyi, and his inner circle, who, according to interlocutors in law enforcement agencies, may play a key role in making decisions regarding important criminal proceedings.
According to the latest declarations, among Verbytskyi's trusted persons is Pavlo Bogdashevsky, who held the position of prosecutor of the Saltivka District Prosecutor's Office. In the team, he is called a person who formally signs documents without delving into their content. According to sources, this is why he often acts as a nominal signatory of procedural decisions prepared by others.
Employees of the institution claim that Bohdashevsky received departmental awards at the suggestion of the leadership, but he has no real influence on the investigation. In fact, his role, according to colleagues, is reduced to technical documentation.
Instead, the key organizational and analytical work, according to sources, is carried out by another prosecutor close to the head, Volodymyr Pikh. He is credited with access to the materials of economic proceedings, planning investigative actions, and preparing procedural decisions, which are subsequently submitted for signature.
Of particular note is the information about possible pressure on heads of departments of territorial procurement centers. According to the interlocutors, inspections and communication with the CCC were carried out by persons who formally did not have sufficient authority, but at the same time received access to official information and personal files.
Anti-corruption experts emphasize that the practice of some officials actually making decisions, while others only formally signing them, creates serious risks of abuse. In such conditions, responsibility is blurred, and control over the legality of processes is significantly complicated.
There is currently no official response from the leadership of the prosecutor's office to these allegations. At the same time, the situation may become the subject of scrutiny by higher prosecutor's offices or law enforcement agencies, as this concerns the work of the body responsible for investigating defense offenses during martial law.
