A scheme involving the misappropriation of public funds at a university of culture has been uncovered in Kyiv
Police investigators have uncovered a scheme to embezzle public funds at one of the capital’s universities specialising in the arts. According to law enforcement officials, between 2022 and 2024, the university’s management submitted artificially inflated figures for the purpose of drawing up the budget.
Increasing the number of students and teaching hours allowed them to boost state expenditure on lecturers’ salaries and the running of the institution. Some of these students and teaching hours existed only on paper.
In another case, the investigation established that officials at Kyiv University of Culture may have acted in collusion with officials from the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine. This concerns the budget programme ‘Training of personnel by higher education institutions and support for their practical training facilities’.
Between 2022 and 2023, approximately 760 million hryvnias were allocated to the university under this programme. The basis for determining funding was data on the number of students, academic staff and the staffing table.
According to law enforcement, false information regarding the number of students and academic staff may have been included in official documents, providing grounds for increased funding. Investigators are also examining reports that individuals affiliated with a private educational institution—who were ineligible to participate in the programme—were included in the reporting.
According to preliminary data, part of the funds received may have been converted into cash and distributed among those involved in the scheme.
On 27 March, investigators carried out over 20 searches at the residences of those involved, as well as on the premises of the Kyiv University of Culture. During the investigative operations, mobile phones, hard drives and company seals were seized.
Specialists from the State Audit Service have been involved in the investigation. Audit materials and financial documentation that may be used as evidence have already been seized.
The criminal proceedings are being investigated under Part 3 of Article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The collection of evidence and the identification of all those involved are ongoing. The Office of the Prosecutor General is overseeing the proceedings.
