The son-in-law of the former head of the Odesa region failed to comply with a court order regarding an unauthorized structure in a national park
According to local media reports, Grigory Melnichenko, the son-in-law of the former head of the Odesa region, has ignored the Supreme Court’s ruling ordering the demolition of an unauthorized structure built on land within the Lower Dniester National Nature Park. Despite the court ruling, the structure allegedly continues to be used for profit on protected land.
According to Dr. Ivan Rusev, a Doctor of Biological Sciences, another violation was documented during a joint raid by environmentalists and the administration of the Lower Dniester National Nature Park at the mouth of the Hlyboky Turunchuk River.
A boat carrying tourists, captained by Melnichenko, was speeding through the protected water area. He was transporting vacationers specifically to those permanent structures in the Bilyayiv Forestry that, according to the court’s decision, are subject to demolition.
The biologist noted that Melnichenko ignored an order from the head of the national park, Volodymyr Samusev, prohibiting civilians from visiting this area.
The situation is complicated by the fact that the quiet season is currently in effect. The riverbanks and the entrance to the Dniester Estuary are full of chicks, and rare species, including Red Book-listed pelicans, stop here to feed and rest. High-speed racing causes enormous damage to biodiversity—waves from the boats destroy nests, and the roar of the engine scares the birds.
The national park administration has called on the relevant department of the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources to intervene. According to Rusev, other state and regulatory agencies in the Odesa region continue to turn a blind eye to the antics of this untouchable businessman.
Legal battles over this area have been ongoing for several years. Back in 2018, the firm “Melnichenko” signed an agreement with the national park ostensibly for the development of tourism. Instead of temporary tents on the picturesque shores of the Deep Turunchuk, permanent recreational facilities were built.
In March 2026, the Supreme Court of Ukraine ruled the agreement illegal and ordered the forest plots to be returned to the state, with the structures to be demolished. The firm attempted to block the demolition through the commercial court but failed.
As a reminder, Hryhoriy Melnichenko is the former head of the Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi District Council and the son-in-law of former Odesa Oblast Governor Serhiy Hrynevets. He lost his position after being suspected of stealing a boat in the summer of 2023.
As a reminder, another of Melnichenko’s firms (“21st Century Amateur Fishermen’s Association”) was also embroiled in a scandal—it occupied a plot on the banks of the Dniester River near Mayaky.
This is reported in an article by Absolution Leaks.
Earlier, the head of “Forests of Ukraine” declared millions in income and cash
Also in Ivano-Frankivsk Oblast, the prosecutor’s office is seeking through the courts nearly 387 million hryvnias in compensation for damages caused by logging in the “Hutsulshchyna” National Park. The investigation claims that under the guise of sanitary work, over 9,000 trees were destroyed there without the necessary permits and approvals. Now, they are attempting to hold the state-owned enterprise “Forests of Ukraine” responsible, to which the relevant forestry enterprise was later merged.
