The Chief Sanitary Doctor of Ukraine Svyatoslav Protas was just detained on charges of embezzlement of public funds, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov wrote on Facebook on 30 June.
Along with Protas was detained the head of department of the Sanitary Service of Ukraine Chepurnoy. Simultaneously, searches are underway across the country as 19 regional chiefs medical of sanitation are being questioned, some of which will also be arrested," Avakov wrote
According to him, a group of officials led by Protas has developed and implemented a criminal scheme for the gross embezzlement of public funds. The participants of the scam were arrested as they tried to cash out the first tranche of the stolen funds (400 thousand hryvnya).
Protas was detained in his office as the organizer of the scam.
Avakov noted that the operatives of NABU and police have documented 11 cases of extortion and reception of bribes from subordinates by Protas.