The SAPO accuses Zadorozhnii of soliciting a bribe from a village council head in Sumy Region, together with his accomplices, and of organizing the transfer of the bribe.

According to the investigation, in the summer of 2023, Zadorozhnii called Serhii Pavlenko, the head of a village council in the Sumy region and informed him that the MP's trusted person would contact him.

The phone call took place shortly before the start of the tender for the repair of a damaged water pipeline in the Okhtyrka district of the Sumy region. The tender amount was almost UAH 30 million. Subsequently, the MP's trusted person stated that the company Torhpostachbudservis LLC would have to be awarded.

The company applied for the tender, but its documents did not meet the requirements. The village head refused to influence the tender committee. As a result, the tender, worth more than UAH 24 million, was awarded to a different company.

In response, Zadorozhnii personally called the village head and complained that, because of these actions, he had been unable to “receive the money.”

After the contract was signed with the winning bidder, local law-enforcement officers and the State Audit Service began creating obstacles. This blocked the execution of the contracted works and the possibility of payment.

The village head turned to Zadorozhnii for help in removing these obstacles, as he believed they might be connected to the MP. Zadorozhnii promised to resolve the issue in exchange for a kickback of UAH 3.4 million.

According to the investigation, the MP demanded 10% for himself and instructed that 4% be provided to employees of the local law-enforcement agencies.

The MP and the village head also discussed involving law-enforcement officers in the scheme in case the contractors — the state enterprise SUMBUD LEBEDYNPROMBUD CONSTRUCTION COMPANY refused to pay. They intended to obtain the money within one week after the signing of the work acceptance certificates.

To assist the village head in dealing with law-enforcement agencies, the MP involved a “legal consultant.”

Zadorozhnii recruited Oleh Tkachenko, Acting Deputy Head of the Criminal Investigation Department of the National Police of Ukraine and former Head of the Strategic Investigations Department in the Sumy region. At that time, Tkachenko served as a senior detective for especially important cases. He was responsible for arranging the transfer of the money from the village head to the MP through his former subordinate, Viacheslav Miroshnyk.

After meeting the “legal consultant,” the village head refused to hand over the first part of the bribe because he had not received the promised “consultation.” As a result, Zadorozhnii called the village head and insisted on transferring the money. SAPO detectives therefore consider that the MP’s actions were accompanied by extortion.

Zadorozhnii’s conduct is classified under Article 368(4), Article 27(3), Article 15(2), Article 368(4) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

The conduct of National Police officers Viacheslav Miroshnyk and Oleh Tkachenko, who according to the investigation acted as accomplices, is classified under Article 27(5), Article 15(2), Article 368(4) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

NABU published a video about this case.