Sienkevych stated that he had no grounds for dismissing the head of the sports department
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- Alisa MelikadamianContributing Editor, Reporter
Iryna Bondarenko, head of the sports department, returned to work on 25 September. Photo: Department of Physical Culture and Sport, Mykolaiv City CouncilThe Mayor of Mykolaiv, Oleksandr Sienkevych, has stated that the city authorities currently have no grounds for suspending or dismissing the head of the Department of Physical Culture and Sport, Iryna Bondarenko, who returned to work following a court ruling.
Oleksandr Sienkevych made these remarks in a comment to NikVesti.
«She has already returned and taken leave. We need to meet with her and discuss what to do next. Whether to dismiss her or not, suspend her or not, or allow her to continue working or not — we need grounds for any such action,» said Oleksandr Sienkevych.
He explained that the city authorities are considering the possibility of terminating the employment relationship at the employee’s request, by mutual agreement, or due to a breach of labour law. According to the mayor, none of these grounds currently exist.
«She has every right to go to work and carry out her duties. Together with you, we are monitoring the progress of the court case to understand what the law enforcement agencies suspect her of, and it is up to the court to decide whether she is guilty of this. All the information we have comes exclusively from the media and public sources. We are waiting for the outcome, and we will make a decision based on that,» said the mayor.
He added that the mere opening of criminal proceedings is not sufficient grounds for suspending the official from her duties.
— To be frank, that is not enough. We currently have many ongoing criminal investigations involving individual officials, not only in Mykolaiv but across the country. And the results of these investigations have so far been disappointing. We are being very cautious at the moment; the legal department is monitoring the situation. Following our discussion with Iryna Oleksandrivna, we will decide whether she will remain in her post. She maintains that all these allegations are false,» explained the mayor.
As a reminder, on 23 September, Judge Halyna Podzihun refused the prosecution’s request to extend the period of Bondarenko’s suspension from office. The prosecutor appealed against this decision and asked the Court of Appeal to overturn it and extend the official’s suspension for the duration of the pre-trial investigation. However, the court refused the prosecution’s request to open proceedings.
Most recently, Halyna Podzihun, an investigating judge at the Central District Court of Mykolaiv, extended Bondarenko’s suspension on 27 July. At that time, the court ruled that she could not hold office until 24 September.
The case of Iryna Bondarenko
On 29 April 2026, Iryna Bondarenko, head of the Sports Department at Mykolaiv City Council, was charged with embezzlement of public funds. The sum in question amounts to over half a million hryvnias. Prior to this, law enforcement officers had carried out a search of her home and car.
However, this is not the first search linked to Iryna Bondarenko. Investigations at the building of the Department of Physical Culture and Sport of the Mykolaiv City Council came to light on 20 January. NikVesti’s sources within the law enforcement agencies reported that searches took place at Iryna Bondarenko’s department and at two sports schools. According to our information, these are the «Peremoha» sports school, headed by Oleksandr Munch, and the «Specialised Children’s and Youth Sports School of the Olympic Reserve №6», where the former head of the sports department, Oleh Mashkin, works as deputy director and boxing coach.
A few days later, Iryna Bondarenko, head of the Department of Physical Culture and Sport at Mykolaiv City Council, commented on the searches that took place last week. She accused the media of spreading rumours, whilst at the same time confirming that the department had provided all the necessary documents requested by the law enforcement agencies.
On 23 January, the Central District Court ordered the seizure of property belonging to the Department of Physical Culture and Sport of the Mykolaiv City Council that had been seized during the searches.
At that time, the mayor, Oleksandr Sienkevych, did not suspend Iryna Bondarenko from her post. In a comment to NikVesti, the mayor later stated that the allegation that the Department of Physical Culture and Sport had organised the sale of exemptions from mobilisation for $5,000 was untrue, and that he was awaiting the outcome of the investigation.
After the formal notice of suspicion was served, Mayor Oleksandr Sienkevych stated that Iryna Bondarenko would be suspended from her post for the duration of the investigation.
On 4 May, following a court ruling, she was suspended from her post as head of the department and remanded in custody until 26 June, with the possibility of bail.
Read also the report at NikVesti «The head of the sports department failed to explain to the court how her father-in-law, mother-in-law and nanny were employed at a sports school in Mykolaiv»
