During Russia’s full-scale invasion, Pavlohrad Mayor Anatolii Vershyna and his family acquired real estate in Truskavets and Kyiv. The total estimated market value of these newly acquired assets could reach UAH 30 million. Yet the declared purchase prices of some of these properties are dozens of times lower than those of comparable assets on the market. We examined Mayor Vershyna’s asset declarations, real estate and vehicle transactions, as well as multimillion-hryvnia public procurement contracts awarded by the Pavlohrad City Council, which have been marred by inflated cost estimates, the loss of planned European funding, and criminal investigations.
Watch the full video investigation by Civic Control into the Pavlohrad mayor’s assets and public procurement spending:
An Apartment in Truskavets for UAH 187,000
In May 2022, Pavlohrad Mayor Anatolii Vershyna and his wife became the owners of a 75 m² apartment in the Versailles residential complex in the resort town of Truskavets.According to
According to Anatolii Vershyna’s asset declaration, the property was valued at UAH 187,250, or approximately $6,400 at the exchange rate at the time.
That’s just $85 per square meter.
For comparison, in the summer of 2026, a 78 m² apartment in the same residential complex was listed for sale at $148,000 – approximately UAH 6.5 million. The difference between the declared purchase price and the 2026 asking price is more than twentyfold.
A Mercedes-Benz GLE for UAH 87,000
The story of the Pavlohrad mayor’s wife’s car is no less intriguing.
In September 2022, Valentyna Vershyna purchased a 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLE 250 for just UAH 87,000, or approximately $2,400.
This amount is recorded in the mayor’s asset declaration.
And no, we’re not talking about a 20-year-old Lanos. An actual Mercedes!
For comparison, in 2026, a similar vehicle was listed for sale for approximately UAH 1.3 million.
Valentyna Vershyna later sold the Mercedes for UAH 1.5 million – more than UAH 1.4 million above its declared purchase price.
Houses in Pavlohrad and Truskavets: More Unusual Property Deals
In 2022, Anatolii Vershyna purchased a house in Pavlohrad for UAH 320,000.
In 2025, the mayor sold the house, along with two plots of land, for UAH 2.9 million.
Meanwhile, the mayor’s family was acquiring property far beyond Pavlohrad.
In 2024, the mayor’s wife, Valentyna Vershyna, purchased a 211.1 m² house in Truskavets.
According to the asset declaration, the property was valued at approximately UAH 1.3 million.
That works out to around $167 per square meter.
For comparison, another house on the same street was listed for sale in 2024 at approximately $617 per square meter.
Apartments in Kyiv and New Assets Worth Tens of Millions
We also investigated real estate purchases in Kyiv’s Faina Town residential complex.
In 2024, a woman whose full name matches that of the mayor’s daughter, Vladyslava Vershyna, purchased a 45.5 m² apartment. Based on market prices in the summer of 2026, a comparable apartment was worth approximately $111,000.
In the spring of 2026, a woman whose full name matches that of the mayor’s wife, Valentyna Vershyna, purchased a 70.6 m² apartment in the same residential complex.
The estimated market value of such an apartment is approximately UAH 7.4 million.
Taking into account the properties identified in Truskavets and Kyiv, along with other acquisitions, the total estimated market value of newly acquired assets belonging to the Pavlohrad mayor and his family could reach UAH 30 million.
Discounts for the Mayor’s Family, Markups for the City Budget?
While Anatolii Vershyna’s family was purchasing real estate and vehicles at astonishingly low prices, the Pavlohrad City Council was awarding public procurement contracts that showed the opposite trend.
We analyzed water pipeline repair projects on Ozerna Street and Shakhtobudivnykiv Avenue.
Both contracts were awarded to Spetsbudmontazh-21, a private enterprise.
– Reconstruction of the water pipeline on Ozerna Street – UAH 18.3 million.
– Repair of the water pipeline on Shakhtobudivnykiv Avenue – UAH 7.9 million.
Our analysis of the cost estimates revealed that prices for certain construction materials were inflated by as much as 150% compared to market prices.
But the most intriguing part of this story is how these projects were funded.
How Pavlohrad Lost UAH 16 Million in Planned European Funding
Repairs to the two water pipelines were originally expected to be partially financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB).
UAH 11 million in European funding was earmarked for the water pipeline on Ozerna Street, with another UAH 5 million allocated to the project on Shakhtobudivnykiv Avenue.
However, in late 2025, the funding arrangements changed: instead of EIB funds, the Pavlohrad city budget took over the costs of both contracts. As a result, UAH 16 million in planned European funding was replaced with money from the city’s own budget.
In our view, the loss of European funding was caused by the Pavlohrad City Council’s failure to conduct proper competitive procurement procedures.
Meanwhile, construction material prices were found to be inflated, and both contracts have already attracted the attention of law enforcement authorities.
Why did the city fail to secure the planned European funding? And why did local taxpayers ultimately foot the bill for projects involving inflated prices?
These are questions that city officials need to answer.
Court documents concerning the water pipeline on Ozerna Street and Shakhtobudivnykiv Avenue confirm that criminal investigations have been opened.
Lyceum No. 17 Shelter: Construction Costs Rose by UAH 18 Million After European Funding Was Secured
The construction of a shelter for Lyceum No. 17 was initially planned to be financed through the city budget. In October 2025, a contract was signed with the private enterprise Spetsbudmontazh-21 for approximately UAH 128 million. Construction was scheduled to be completed by December 2026.
The original contract was subsequently terminated due to funding cuts. But after European funding was secured, the project did not become cheaper – quite the opposite. Its cost increased.
In March 2026, the same contractor was awarded a new contract worth approximately UAH 146 million, including UAH 80 million in European Union funding under the Ukraine Facility programme.
As a result, the contract value increased by approximately UAH 18 million, or 14%. Meanwhile, the construction deadline was pushed back by an entire year, from December 2026 to December 2027.
We also conducted a partial analysis of the new cost estimate and identified UAH 3.8 million in inflated material costs. And that’s not all. Our partial analysis of the very first certificates of completed works already revealed UAH 1.1 million in overpayments.
All this comes against the backdrop of the contracting authority initially requiring the contractor to conduct market price analyses for key construction materials — only to subsequently scrap that requirement.
Lyceum No. 9 Shelter: How Construction Costs Increased by UAH 11 Million
In 2025, the private enterprise Spetsbudmontazh-21 was awarded a contract to build a shelter for Lyceum No. 9, worth approximately UAH 104 million. However, on April 14, 2026, the contract was terminated before construction had been completed.
By that point, the contractor had already received UAH 77.3 million, leaving UAH 26.6 million unspent under the original contract.
On the very same day, the contracting authority announced a new procurement involving the same contractor, this time worth UAH 38.6 million.
As a result, the cost of building the shelter increased by more than UAH 11 million. Why did this happen? We compared the cost estimates under both contracts and discovered that a substantial portion of the equipment included in the original agreement had never been purchased.
Instead, it was transferred to the new contract at higher prices. The increase in equipment prices alone added UAH 6.5 million to the planned expenditure.
Meanwhile, the new cost estimate included only UAH 2.2 million worth of additional works.
In effect, rather than completing construction at the previously agreed prices, the city signed a new contract with the same contractor on more expensive terms.
Dormitory for Displaced Persons: Investigators Examine Possible Overpayments Exceeding UAH 27 Million
A separate criminal investigation concerns the reconstruction of a dormitory for internally displaced persons (IDPs) at 9/2 Promyslova Street in Pavlohrad.
According to the investigation materials, the costs of construction works and materials may have been inflated by more than UAH 27 million.
To facilitate a forensic examination, the court authorized investigators to obtain cost estimates and other project documentation.
The contracting authority was the Department of Municipal Services and Construction of the Pavlohrad City Council, headed by Andrii Zavhorodnii. The contractor was BK-Novostroy LLC. Interestingly, the department head’s wife, Oksana Zavhorodnia, worked for this company in 2023-2024.
But that is not the only intriguing detail in the department head’s asset declarations.
Andrii Zavhorodnii’s asset declaration also lists an 87.7 m² residential house under the section for unfinished construction projects.
Thus, while law enforcement authorities investigate possible multimillion-hryvnia overpayments in the reconstruction of a dormitory for displaced persons, the asset declaration of the official heading the department responsible for commissioning the project also includes a residential house of his own.
Andrii Zavhorodnii is also a defendant in a separate criminal case involving allegations of abuse of power or official position.
Dormitory for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Pavlohrad. Photo: Summer 2026.
Questions the Mayor Must Answer
As Pavlohrad continues to endure relentless Russian shelling and the threat of guided aerial bomb attacks, Anatolii Vershyna has some explaining to do to the city’s residents.
Where did the money for the mayor’s family’s new properties come from? Why are these assets being purchased at astonishingly low prices? Do the actual costs of these acquisitions correspond to the officially declared incomes of Anatolii Vershyna and his family?
When Russian missiles and drones threaten people’s lives, every unfinished shelter is a matter of public safety, not just another budget-funded construction project.
Who will be held accountable for rising shelter construction costs and delayed completion deadlines? Why is the city spending its own budget funds instead of using the European funding originally planned for these projects?
The people of Pavlohrad have a right to know where their money is going. Demanding transparency in municipal spending, explanations for every additional million spent, and a public accounting from the mayor is not an unreasonable demand – it is a fundamental part of public oversight.
Pavlohrad is not Vershyna’s private company. The city budget is not a bottomless wallet for contractors. And the safety of children under Russian bombardment is no place for experiments with pricing.
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This publication was prepared with the financial support of the European Union and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). Its contents are the sole responsibility of the Civil Control Platform and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or NED.