Under the supervision of the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office, a district gas utility official, who is also a regional council deputy, has been charged with soliciting and accepting a bribe in exchange for influencing decisions by officials (Part 3, Article 369-2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).
Investigators reported that the deputy demanded and received $20,000 from the head of an agricultural enterprise to facilitate the company’s connection to the gas network. The official promised to use his connections to ensure a favorable decision regarding the issuance of technical conditions for project documentation development. He also guaranteed that these technical conditions would not be altered or canceled in the future.
The accused threatened that failure to pay the requested amount would result in artificial obstacles to connecting the enterprise to the gas network.
Law enforcement officers detained the suspect immediately after receiving the bribe under Article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine. Following a motion by the prosecutors, he was suspended from his position.
Investigative actions are ongoing to identify all individuals involved in the crime. The pre-trial investigation is being conducted by the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Lviv region, with operational support provided by the Strategic Investigations Department of the National Police.
It should be noted that according to Article 62 of the Constitution of Ukraine, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court ruling.