Plagiarism in a doctoral dissertation, an apartment in Pechersk, eight hectares of land and luxury cars: what is known about the property of KNUKiM vice-rector Kostyria

The career of Vice-Rector of Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts (KNUKiM) Inna Kostyria looks impeccable on paper: a doctoral degree, leadership positions in several institutions, and deputy ambitions. However, the details of this biography that journalists were able to establish resemble a case study in academic misconduct more than a success story.

This is discussed in a report by Halyna Kapustynska for "Stop Corruption TV."

A dissertation of 360 pages — and half is someone else’s?

In 2017, journalist Tetiana Parkhomenko analyzed Inna Kostyria’s doctoral dissertation in detail and found striking figures: of the 360 pages in the main body of the work, 190 were borrowed without proper citations, and nearly 90 pages of that portion matched other sources verbatim. This was reported in a publication on "Ukrainska Pravda. Zhyttia."

The problem turned out not to be isolated: a third of Kostyria’s candidate dissertation also contained borrowed text. Both works were defended under the supervision of the same academic advisor — Viktor Andrushchenko — which raises questions not only about the candidate herself but also about the quality of academic oversight in general.

The most telling moment of this story is the outcome. In 2016, already after it was technically possible to check the text for plagiarism, the Attestation Board of the Ministry of Education and Science approved Kostyria’s degree of Doctor of Political Sciences.

The editorial office sent an official inquiry to the Ministry of Education and Science (MES) and received a response stating that, after changes to the legislation, the ministry lost the right to review decisions on awarding academic degrees. The MES also reported that no verification of the facts presented in Tetiana Parkhomenko’s publication was conducted, and the ministry had not received any appeals regarding textual borrowings in Kostyria’s doctoral dissertation. The decision of the specialized academic council of the National Pedagogical Dragomanov University to award her the degree of Doctor of Political Sciences in the specialty 23.00.03 "Political Culture and Ideology," approved by the MES order dated 29 September 2016 ¹ 1166, remains in force.

Thus, according to the agency’s logic, checking for plagiarism should be done by the “collegial body of the educational institution itself” — in other words, simply put, the same university where Kostyria holds leadership positions.

"The right hand" of Poplavskyi at the Palace "Ukraine"

In 2014, Kostyria unexpectedly became head of the National Palace of Arts "Ukraine" as general director. Media at the time explicitly wrote that the appointment was actively lobbied for by Mykhailo Poplavskyi, and Kostyria was called his "right hand."

She did not remain in the position long: by July of the same year she was dismissed, and the enterprise’s financial and economic activities began to be audited. Kostyria twice tried to challenge her removal in court — in administrative and civil proceedings. In the administrative case she was denied because the court classified the dispute as labor-related, not public-service-related; in the civil case proceedings were opened and a hearing scheduled.

According to the media, not only Poplavskyi was said to have influenced the Palace’s work: Kostyria’s husband, Borys Novozhilov, was also named as the de facto curator of the institution.

A free concert and an "campaign" election stunt

In 2019, Kostyria ran for the Verkhovna Rada as an independent candidate. In Fastiv a free concert was organized in support of her campaign featuring Oleh Vynnyk and Mykhailo Poplavskyi. The outlet hromadske explicitly called the event campaign-related: Agrarian Party symbols and balloons were present, political statements were made from the stage, and performers posed for photos with the candidate.

Assets: an apartment in Pechersk, land and a bank debt

The Kostyria family's assets also raise questions. In Kyiv, in Pechersk, she owns an apartment of 122 square meters, purchased in 2012 for an approximate cost of 300 thousand dollars, as well as a parking space in the same building.

In Kirovohrad region, she owns four land plots totaling more than 8 hectares.

Kostyria’s daughter, Uliana, regularly showcases trips around Europe and brand-name items on social media — including a Gucci jacket worth over 3 thousand dollars. Officially she owns no registered property, but she is the founder of a charity golf tournament, a Ukrainian golf champion, and often vacations in Switzerland, France, and Spain.

According to YouControl, Kostyria is also registered as the owner of a BMW 520D 2024 model year.

Kostyria’s husband, Borys Novozhilov, owns a house of 361 square meters in Hostomel, an apartment in Kyiv and a garage box — most of this property was also acquired via gift agreements.

At the same time, in 2023 "Universal Bank" filed a lawsuit against Kostyria seeking to recover a debt of more than 11,5 thousand dollars.

A ring worth 700 thousand euros and a watch worth 300 thousand

An analysis of 26 public photos of Kostyria from social media, where journalists tried to identify brands of items and estimate their approximate cost, yields a rather telling statistic. The same Graff ring appears repeatedly in the images, its estimated value by visual similarity assessed at 700 thousand euros — it is visible in at least nine of the twenty-six frames.

A Rolex watch estimated at 300 thousand euros appears three times in the photos. Other items include a boat (approximately €800 thousand), a Bentley (approximately €240 thousand), a fur coat estimated at €30 thousand, Cartier earrings costing from €100 to €250 thousand depending on the photo, a Dior jacket for 5 thousand dollars, a silver bag from the same brand for almost 4 thousand dollars, and an Hermès scarf.

Even the most modest outfit in the analyzed selection — a blouse and skirt estimated at a few thousand euros — exceeds the monthly salary of many Ukrainian academics. Judging from social media, this level of spending appears routine for the vice-rector.

What KNUKiM replied

The editorial office requested an official comment directly from KNUKiM. On the institution’s premises journalists were met by a university representative who assured them that there was nothing to hide and that he was ready to answer all questions.

According to him, at the time of the conversation Kostyria was officially no longer working at the university: "Ms. Inna is currently not working at the university. Her appointment order, which appointed her, expired on 19 August, and she did not continue her legal relations with the university."

Asked whether Kostyria had been present in Ukraine at all while formally holding the position, the university representative gave an evasive answer: "It’s hard to say where she was — in Ukraine or outside Ukraine... If she performs this activity, it’s not a fact that she has to be at the university... She could have been consulting online."

In plain terms: the position existed, the order was issued, salary was apparently paid, but the university officially cannot clarify where the department head was physically located.

In addition to the verbal exchange, the editorial office sent KNUKiM an official written request for public information. On 11 September 2026 the university responded — however, not substantively. It stated that "due to the need to collect and process the requested information, reviewing this request requires an extension of the processing time in the manner provided for by part 4 of article 20 of the Law of Ukraine 'On Access to Public Information.'"

Formally the university acted within the law: extending the period for processing a request is permitted if a large volume of information needs to be processed. However, it is worth recalling that the university representative during the in-person conversation assured that there was nothing to hide and that all documents would be provided in a timely manner. In practice, "in a timely manner" turned into the maximum legally allowed waiting period. The editorial office is awaiting a substantive response and will publish it as soon as it is received.

What this means legally

Summing up the established facts: possible plagiarism in a scientific work, which the ministry, by its own rules, did not check and does not have the authority to check. Social media showing assets that, by rough estimates, amount to hundreds of millions of hryvnias when converted from the value of the items. Official replies that explain everything except the essence of the raised questions. And the vice-rector position, which, despite all the listed circumstances, remained unchanged for years.

According to our sources, since the start of the full-scale invasion Inna Kostyria has spent a total of 3 years 9 months outside Ukraine, while remaining in an employment relationship with KNUKiM.

If the facts of baseless salary payments for time of actual absence from the workplace are confirmed, the actions of the university officials and the lecturer herself could potentially fall under the qualification of part 5 of article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (embezzlement, misappropriation of property or seizure of it through abuse of official position in especially large amounts).