The Cassation Criminal Court within the Supreme Court has scheduled a hearing for September 15, 2026, at 12:00 PM to review appeals regarding the sentence of Oleksiy Basan, the former director of the state enterprise «Agency of Local Roads of Poltava Region.» The former official was found guilty of the misappropriation of public funds allocated for regional infrastructure development and road repair. Both the defense team and the Special Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) are challenging the appellate court’s decision in the country’s highest judicial instance.
The legal proceedings involving the former head of the Poltava road agency have spanned over a year, marked by conflicting judicial rulings. Initially, the High Anti-Corruption Court (HACC) acquitted Basan due to the absence of a criminal offense in his actions. However, SAPO prosecutors appealed the decision, arguing that the former official deliberately violated budget legislation when allocating state funds.
The appeal process drastically altered the course of the case. On January 27, 2026, the HACC Appeals Chamber overturned the acquittal and issued a new verdict finding Basan guilty of misappropriating State Road Fund resources.
The court sentenced the former director to two years of service restriction, with 20% of his pay deducted for state revenue. Additionally, the tribunal banned Basan from holding administrative, organizational, or managerial positions at state and municipal enterprises for two years.
Despite the conviction handed down by the appellate instance, both sides filed cassation appeals with the Supreme Court. Basan’s defense maintains his complete innocence and seeks a full acquittal, whereas prosecutors argue that the sentence is too lenient given the severity of the offense.
«To conclude preparations and schedule the cassation review of the criminal proceedings regarding Oleksiy Basan—based on the cassation appeals of his defense counsel and the SAPO prosecutor—against the verdict of the HACC Appeals Chamber dated January 27, 2026, for 12:00 PM on September 15, 2026,» the court order states.
According to pre-trial investigations, the case involves the unauthorized reallocation of tens of millions of hryvnias intended for the maintenance and repair of local roads in the Poltava region. Redirecting these funds violated the Budget Code of Ukraine and disrupted planned infrastructure projects across the region.
This case is part of a broader push by Ukrainian anti-corruption institutions to prosecute high-level financial misconduct. Separately, the HACC has begun proceedings in another major case involving Security Service of Ukraine (SSU) officer Artem Shilo, his former subordinate Oleksandr Kovaliuk, and two accomplices, who face charges of embezzling funds from Ukrzaliznytsia (Ukrainian Railways) and laundering proceeds of crime.