RF IC investigates Zaporizhzhia Gauleiter Balytskyi - Andriushchenko

The Russian Investigative Committee has launched an investigation into the collaborator and so-called "governor" of the occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Yevhen Balytskyi, following complaints from the aggressor country's Central Election Commission. This was reported by UNN with reference to the head of the Center for the Study of Occupation, Petro Andriushchenko.

Details

As Andriushchenko noted, on January 22, 2026, the Second Department for the Investigation of Particularly Important Cases of the Investigative Directorate of the Russian Investigative Committee for the temporarily occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast announced the completion of the investigation into the criminal case against the general director of LLC "Avtodor Zaporozhye" under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (large-scale fraud).

In October-December 2023, a contracting organization, within the framework of a state contract, carried out work to restore the protective layer of the bridge over the Yushanly River on the Melitopol - Polohy highway. However, the work was done purely on paper. In fact, the work was not completed in full and with quality violations, but payment from the regional budget was made in full. The damages exceeded 13 million rubles.

He added that the defendant fully admitted guilt and compensated for the damages, and the scheme worked exactly until it ceased to be safe.

This case is a clear illustration not only of financial abuses in the mechanisms of the so-called infrastructure restoration in the occupied territories, but also of the systemic control of local gauleiters by Russian security forces. Money here is not the goal. Money here is a leash. However, the defendant did not limit himself to a confession for himself. He fully surrendered Balytskyi. And this is a key point.

Currently, Balytskyi is holding on solely due to Sergei Kiriyenko, the first deputy head of the Russian presidential administration, and the head of the Russian government in 1998. He is called the "overseer" of the occupied territories of Ukraine.

But this is about a delay. The answer to the question "how long" will be given by the next blackouts. That is why the energy sector in Melitopol and Berdiansk is being "repaired" so slowly. Because a blackout for Balytskyi is not an accident, it is a political tool.

Recall

The head of the Russian occupation administration in Zaporizhzhia Oblast, Yevhen Balytskyi, was заочно sentenced to life imprisonment.