Case description
Fazil Abbasov, a former member of the Kharkiv Council, was accused of violations in the procurement of municipal equipment for the city, which resulted in UAH 1 million in losses. Initially, the HACC acquitted him, but the appellate instance sentenced the former official to 3.5 years.
Fazil Abbasov is a former member of the Kharkiv City Council from Kernes' party and, before that, a member of the Party of Regions. In the 2020 elections, he ran for the Kharkiv Regional State Administration, but the attempt was unsuccessful. At the time of the investigated events, Abbasov was the head of the Municipal Enterprise Complex for the Removal of Household Waste.
In 2016, the municipal enterprise headed by Abbasov announced a tender for the purchase of garbage containers, and a company controlled by the former official won. Before signing the contract with the latter and purchasing the containers, Abbasov changed the specifications for the procurement items in the tender documentation. As a result, the city received other products at an inflated price, and the municipal company suffered UAH 1 million in losses. Subsequently, the supplier company transferred part of the funds to the company Almaz, which was owned by Abbasov.
The court qualified his actions under Article 364, part 2 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The HACC acquitted Abbasov, but the SAPO prosecutor filed an appeal. The HACC Appeals Chamber overturned the acquittal, found the former official guilty, and sentenced him to 3.5 years in prison. Abbasov was taken into custody right in the courtroom.
