The partner of Kyiv police deputy chief does business with a collaborator despite the officer’s “condemnation”

The partner of the first deputy chief of the Main Directorate of the National Police in Kyiv, Artem Rodygin, entered into a joint business with Taras Chekurda, who was convicted of collaboration. The law enforcement officer condemns this fact, but insists that neither he nor his partner knew about the “Russian connection” in her business partner’s activities. This is reported in a Bihus.Info segment.

Artem Rodygin not only holds the influential position of first deputy head of the capital’s police headquarters, but is also among the closest associates of National Police head Ivan Vyhivskyi. In recent years the officer’s “career path” has effectively mirrored Vyhivskyi’s personnel moves – Rodygin changed posts alongside him and later received a position in Kyiv.

Artem Rodygin and Ivan Vyhivskyi

In his declaration for 2025 year, Rodygin for the first time listed Tetyana Hural as a person with whom he cohabits and is not married. The woman is a former Kyiv police investigator who, after recently leaving law enforcement, opened a law firm and went into agricultural business in the Poltava region.

Tetyana Hural, Rodygin’s partner

According to YouControl, in spring 2025 year Hural became co-owner of the companies “Rayzeminvest-2017” and “Vil'khovatske,” which engage in growing grain, legumes, and oilseed crops in Poltava region. Her business partner at that time became Valeria Chekurda — the mother of businessman Taras Chekurda, who in 2025 year was found guilty of collaboration.

Taras Chekurda, businessman-collaborator

The investigation established that after the occupation of parts of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, Chekurda’s business — including two dolphinariums in the “Oscar” chain — continued operating in cooperation with the Russian occupation authorities. According to the case materials, the dolphinariums in the occupied territories were re-registered under Russian law, and among the founders of the Russian companies running the dolphinariums were Chekurda’s mother and wife. In July 2025 year the man reached a plea agreement with investigators, admitted his guilt in collaboration, and received a suspended sentence.

After Valeria Chekurda’s death in the summer of that same year, the businessman officially entered into the joint agricultural business with Tetyana Hural, replacing his mother in the companies. And it appears the new partner was not only untroubled by Chekurda’s criminal past but, on the contrary, it was only after the appearance of the partner of the top police officer that Chekurda’s agricultural business problems with law enforcement strangely began to disappear.

One of the joint companies of Hural and Chekurda — LLC “Vil'khovatske” — already had problems with law enforcement before the partner of the top police officer appeared. Poltava prosecutors sought to seize the company’s land through the courts. The essence of the claims was that the company, as the legal successor of an older agricultural enterprise, re-registered land parcels on the basis of an act dated 1994 year. Law enforcement contended that this document was allegedly outdated and did not entitle the company to re-register the land.

LLC “Vil'khovatske” and the land case

However, in spring 2025 year Hural became co-owner of “Vil'khovatske,” and already in September of that year the court lifted the seizure on the company’s lands. The basis for this was the closure of the criminal proceeding by an investigator of the Poltava region police, where Rodygin previously held a senior position. Court materials state that the investigator allegedly read the company’s charter, the transfer act, court decisions, and decided to close the proceeding. Later, in March 2026 year, Hural bought from the company she jointly owned with Chekurda part of these lands — about 40 hectares.

Rodygin’s response to our inquiry

In his response to our inquiry, the first deputy head of Kyiv police asserts that neither he nor his partner knew about Chekurda’s collaboration. Moreover, the officer condemned doing business with collaborators; said that Hural would take the journalists’ information into account in her future economic activities; and also assured that he has no influence on police or prosecutors in Poltava region.