An Odessa court has sentenced an official of the State Service of Ukraine for Food Safety and Consumer Protection to a probationary period for bribery
The Primorsky District Court of Odessa has handed down a verdict against Serhiy Melnyk, head of the Department for Consumer Protection and Regulated Price Control at the Main Directorate of the State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection in the Odessa region.
The official was found guilty of receiving an unlawful benefit, but the court spared him from serving an actual prison sentence, instead imposing a probationary period.
The case began in January 2022, when the agency received a complaint regarding the operations of one of Odesa’s retail pavilions, which sold food products and hookah supplies.
After an initial inspection, the business owner was instructed to contact the department head directly to resolve the identified violations.
During a meeting on January 14, 2022, Serhiy Melnyk offered the business owner a “solution” to prevent a follow-up inspection in exchange for a bribe of 1,000 U.S. dollars.
The agreed-upon amount was handed over that same day at the intersection of Uspenska Street and Oleksandriyskyi Avenue, where law enforcement officers immediately detained the corrupt official.
During the trial, the defendant fully admitted his guilt in committing the crime provided for in Part 3 of Article 368 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The parties signed a plea agreement, which was subsequently approved by the court. According to the verdict, Melnik was sentenced to six years in prison and barred from holding public office for one year.
However, pursuant to Article 75 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, the court exempted the former official from serving an actual prison term, imposing a one-year probationary period instead.
During this time, the convicted person is required to report periodically to the probation office and notify authorities of any changes in his place of residence or employment.
This was reported by Absolution Leaks.
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