Food safety official suspected of bribery in Kirovohrad region
The head of the regional department of the State Service for the Supervision of Food and Consumer Protection in Kirovohrad region is suspected of bribery. According to investigators, he extorted money from exporters of agricultural products.
This was told to the media by Olga Protsenko, a spokeswoman for the territorial department of the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) in Mykolaiv.
According to her, this is the head of the phytosanitary measures department at the border of the phytosanitary security department.
All farms in the region had to pay the fee for issuing phytosanitary certificates required for exporting agricultural products to the European Union. The amount depended on the volume of products planned to be exported outside Ukraine. More than 4,200 certificates were issued per year. In case of refusal, entrepreneurs were threatened with groundless refusals to issue documents
The head of the department was detained while receiving money from an exporter, a spokeswoman for the State Bureau of Investigation said. He was informed of the suspicion and the issue of removing the suspect from his position is being resolved. In addition, those involved in this case are being identified.
The spokeswoman for the regional prosecutor's office, Yana Shass, told Suspilny that the suspect was given a preventive measure - detention with the possibility of posting bail.
According to the investigation, the official demanded and received money for issuing phytosanitary certificates necessary for exporting products - 100 US dollars for each truckload of products.
According to investigators, at the end of 2025, during a personal meeting, the official demanded that the entrepreneur transfer money, warning of problems with obtaining documents in case of refusal.
In January and February 2026, he twice received parts of the previously agreed amount - a total of more than 40 thousand hryvnias, for issuing phytosanitary certificates for the export of corn outside Ukraine. After receiving the next amount, the official was detained
The case is being investigated under Part Three of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine "Acceptance of an offer, promise or receipt of an unlawful benefit by an official in a large amount or committed by an official holding a responsible position, or by prior conspiracy by a group of persons, or repeatedly, or combined with the extortion of an unlawful benefit." The sanction of the article is 5-10 years of imprisonment with deprivation of the right to hold certain positions or engage in certain activities for a term of up to three years, with confiscation of property.
In response to a request from the Public Service regarding their position in the regional department of the State Service for Food and Consumer Protection, they responded as follows: "The Main Department adheres to the principle of zero tolerance for any manifestations of corruption. Currently, we are ensuring proper interaction and cooperation with law enforcement agencies." While the investigation is ongoing, they cannot provide any other information, the response to the request states.
We will remind you that in Lviv, the former deputy director of a children's hospital was exposed for embezzlement.
