Household apartments, general ranks, and promotions after scandals: how the close circle around the new head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs receives benefits in the police

The close circle around the new Minister of Internal Affairs Ivan Vyhivskyi, who previously headed the National Police, for years synchronized their ascent up the career ladder with him and received expensive official apartments and higher positions despite high-profile scandals. This is stated in a Bihus.Info report.

Vyhivskyi began his work in Mykolaiv region, where he rose to the position of deputy head of the regional police. He then headed Poltava police, from where he was transferred to Kyiv, where he first led the capital's department, then the entire National Police, and now heads the ministry itself. A similar geographically-career path was shared by a whole string of people with the new minister.

One of them is Araik Kockhadamyan, former head of the Holosiivskyi district police department in Kyiv. When Vyhivskyi was deputy head of the Mykolaiv region police, Kockhadamyan served in one of the district departments of the same region. When Vyhivskyi was transferred to lead Poltava police, Kockhadamyan headed a precinct in Kremenchuk. And when the current minister became head of the Kyiv main department, the law enforcer headed the Holosiivskyi department. The latter is connected with a loud scandal and a terrible tragedy in spring of this year. 18 In April, a man carried out a shooting in this district. Seven people were killed. At that time the public demanded Kockhadamyan's resignation, noting that the shooting occurred almost near his department. However, responsibility at that time was essentially taken by the patrol police, and after the incident Kockhadamyan received a higher position as deputy head of police of Kyiv region.

In response to our inquiry, Kockhadamyan refused to comment on the actions of the patrols during this incident, since the patrol police is a separate body with its own management system and subordination and does not fall under the Holosiivskyi police department.

Artem Rodigin is another police officer from Vyhivskyi’s close circle. In Mykolaiv and Poltava he was his deputy, then moved to Kyiv to the same position when Vyhivskyi headed the capital main department.

Here Rodigin was quickly provided with housing, a four-room apartment in the new Kyiv residential complex “Slavutych” on the banks of the Dnieper, which he soon privatized.

The biggest questions about Rodigin arose due to the business of his lover. Earlier, Bihus.Info journalists found out that from 2025 the woman became co-owner of several agricultural companies in Poltava region together with the mother of Taras Chekurdya, owner of the “Oscar” dolphinariums, who last summer received a conviction for collaboration activities. Then Rodigin told journalists that he was not aware of the partner’s business details.

Another deputy head of Kyiv police, Andriy Harastiyuk, followed the same path—from Mykolaiv to Poltava, and from there to the capital behind Vyhivskyi.

He also quickly received a three-room official apartment totaling almost one hundred square meters, which he later privatized. Journalists raised questions about the practicality of such government support with housing, since shortly before privatization Harastiyuk declared about one hundred thousand dollars in family savings, part of which was used to purchase an expensive Mercedes GLE for about 50 thousand dollars.

Something similar can be traced in the biography of Dmitry Sokolov, head of the National Police property management department. He also began his career path in Mykolaiv, then worked in Poltava, and then moved to Kyiv.

Sokolov received an official apartment in the same “Slavutych” on the Dnieper as Rodigin, and also privatized it. At the same time the policeman’s family apparently did not need government housing support much. Soon after the move of his son to the capital, Sokolov’s mother bought an apartment in the Sofia City complex near Kyiv, approximately worth 80 thousand dollars. The officer himself, in response to journalists’ questions, explained this by sufficient income of his mother. Soon in the same complex his mother-in-law also bought a non-residential premises and an apartment.

Another Vyhivskyi-linked officer is Roman Butko, head of the National Police’s Department of Crime Analysis. He joined the “pool” later than others, starting in Poltava, where he likely met Vyhivskyi. In 2021 the year Vyhivskyi headed the Kyiv main department, Butko also moved to the capital, and after the boss’s promotion he headed the entire crime analysis department of the National Police.

Butko’s official Kyiv apartment awaited him somewhat longer than his colleagues, but after receiving housing in 2024 in the “Crystal Springs” complex, he privatized it just as quickly. Similar apartments without repairs in this complex cost about 90 thousand dollars.

This summer, on Constitution Day, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree awarding Butko the rank of police general of the third rank. When asked by Bihus.Info journalists what merits earned him the rank and whether it was connected to his proximity to Vyhivskyi, Butko refused to answer.

Another officer from the “pool” is Oleh Hudima, who also has “Mykolaiv roots”: according to earlier declarations, his career began there. Later, following Vyhivskyi’s move to Kyiv, Hudima also moved to the capital in 2021 and headed the Darnytsky police department, and later received a promotion to head of police in Cherkasy region.

In January this year, during a police attempted search, four police officers and a war veteran died here. The tragedy sparked mass protests, with one of the main demands being political accountability of the region’s police chief. Hudima left his post, but already in February he was appointed deputy head of a department ensuring the work of the National Police head. Now, according to Bihus.Info, the officer has found a position as deputy head of one of the National Police’s influential units.