On September 26, during a session of the Irpin City Council, deputies rejected the proposed decision titled “On granting authority to officials of the legal department of the Irpin City Council to represent the interests of the Irpin City Council, the executive committee, and structural divisions of the council.”
Despite this negative decision, on the same day, September 26, 2024, Irpin Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn independently signed Order No. 214, granting such authority to the officials of the legal department of the Irpin City Council to represent the interests of the Irpin City Council, its executive committee, and its subdivisions.
This authority is unlawful since only the Irpin City Council can delegate powers to lawyers for representing the Irpin City Council and its Executive Committee in courts and other bodies.
Markushyn’s next step is reportedly to register the lawyers in the “Register of Legal Entities, Individuals, Entrepreneurs, and Public Associations” through “black registrars” at one of the administrative service centers in the Kyiv region. According to the law, this registration cannot be performed in Irpin.
These powers are necessary for Markushyn to continue applying judicial pressure on witnesses in criminal proceedings where he is implicated. Additionally, he is allegedly using courts to pressure uncooperative business owners who refuse to pay him bribes.
It is worth noting that the key witnesses in the “Irpin Salary-gate” case (Markushyn’s payroll fraud) are the first deputy mayor, Andriy Kravchuk, and deputy mayor, Lidiya Mykhalchenko. To exert pressure on them, Markushyn issued orders reassigning their workplaces to the elder offices in the villages of Mykhailivka-Rubezhivka and Kozyntsi, respectively.
“Irpin Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn is deliberately violating my right to work by worsening my working conditions. First, he deprived me of my office in the Irpin City Council. Then he reassigned me to the Kozyntsi elder office without providing me with a proper workplace. I believe the mayor is systematically violating my labor rights and exerting targeted pressure on me as one of the key witnesses in several criminal cases involving him. It is unacceptable that, in a lawful state, a mayor would use direct pressure—especially against two deputies who were not afraid to publicly reveal his involvement in payroll fraud,” Mykhalchenko commented to ITV journalists.
It should be noted that Irpin Mayor Oleksandr Markushyn is involved in several criminal cases.
Specifically:
- State Bureau of Investigation case No. 62022000000000193 from April 21, 2022, under Article 127(2), 146(3), 187(4), 289(3), and 365(3) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (torture, abduction, robbery, misappropriation of property, etc.)—involving the unlawful deprivation of liberty and seizure of property and vehicles by members of the Irpin Territorial Defense Force under Markushyn’s leadership.
- National Police of Ukraine investigations:
- Case No. 42024110000000129 from April 2, 2024, under Article 191(4) of the Criminal Code (misappropriation or embezzlement of property entrusted to or under the control of the perpetrator in large amounts or under martial law).
- Case No. 12023110000000665 from August 8, 2023, under Article 191(4).
- Case No. 12023111040001176 from June 13, 2023, under Article 191(1).
- Bucha District Prosecutor’s Office investigation:
- Case No. 42023112320000784 from April 12, 2023, under Article 239 of the Criminal Code (illegal seizure of topsoil, endangering human health or the environment).
- Investigations by the Bucha District Police Department:
- Case No. 12024111050000987 from April 2, 2024, under Article 364(1) (abuse of power).
- Case No. 12024111040000895 from July 25, 2024, under Article 190(4) (fraud).
- Case No. 12024111040000647 from May 20, 2024, under Article 364(1).
- Case No. 12022111040000482 from June 17, 2022, under Article 357(2) (theft, misappropriation, extortion, or destruction of documents, stamps, or seals).