In Lviv, two former park directors have been notified of suspicion of illegal tree felling and abuse of office. According to the investigation, their actions caused damage to the natural environment totalling almost 8 million hryvnias. This was reported by the Lviv Region Police and the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office.
Law enforcement officers established that a 45-year-old resident of Lviv district, while serving as director of a park that is a monument of landscape gardening art of local significance and part of Ukraine’s nature reserve fund, between April 2024 and March 2026 gave unlawful instructions to subordinates to carry out tree felling. As a result, 45 maple, chestnut, acacia, elm and ash trees were illegally cut down, causing environmental damage of almost 3.7 million hryvnias.
This individual has been notified by investigators of suspicion under Part 4 of Article 246 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – illegal logging. The article provides for a penalty of imprisonment for a term of five to seven years.
The other suspect is a 46-year-old Lviv resident who headed a regional landscape park, which is also an object of the nature reserve fund of local significance. According to the investigation, in 2024, without obtaining a permit for tree felling on the territory of the park, he exceeded his official powers, concluded a contract with a private entrepreneur and organised the felling of 67 poplar, maple, walnut, chestnut, hornbeam, lime, ash, elm and acacia trees. The amount of damage exceeds 4.2 million hryvnias.
This former director has been notified of suspicion under Part 3 of Article 365 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – abuse of authority or office. The article provides for imprisonment for a term of seven to ten years, with an additional penalty in the form of disqualification from holding certain positions or engaging in certain activities for up to three years.
Pre-trial investigations in both criminal proceedings are ongoing under the procedural supervision of the Lviv Regional Prosecutor’s Office.