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Automatically translated version. May contain inaccuracies compared to the original.
There are people whose careers command respect. And there are careers that should be checked with documents rather than believed at face value. The story of the vice-rector of Kyiv National University of Culture and Arts (KNUKiM), Inna Kostyria, is exactly of the second kind.
More details in Galyna Kapustynska's report for Stop Corruption TV.
In 2014 Kostyria unexpectedly headed the National Palace of Arts “Ukraine.” The media at the time wrote directly: the appointment was lobbied by Mykhailo Poplavsky, and Kostyria was described as his “right hand.” She did not stay long in the position — she was dismissed in July of the same year, and the financial and economic activities of the enterprise began to be checked. Kostyria twice tried to appeal the dismissal in court, with varying outcomes. According to the media, not only Poplavsky influenced the Palace’s work, but also Kostyria’s husband, Borys Novozhilov, who was referred to as the actual overseer of the institution.
In 2019 Kostyria ran for the Verkhovna Rada as a self-nominated candidate. In Fastiv, a free concert by Oleg Vynnyk and Mykhailo Poplavsky was organized in support of her campaign. The hromadske publication then explicitly called the event political campaigning: symbolism and balloons of the Agrarian Party, political statements from the stage, photos of the artists with the candidate.
And now — numbers worth listing in sequence. An apartment in Pechersk of 122 square meters, valued at about 300 thousand dollars. Four land plots in the Kirovohrad region totaling more than 8 hectares.
According to YouControl, Kostyria owns a BMW 520D 2024 model year, with similar configurations valued at up to 62,5 thousand dollars.
Daughter Uliana shows in social networks branded goods and travels across Europe, is the founder of a charitable golf tournament and the Ukrainian golf champion, although officially she has no registered property. Her husband owns a house in Hostomel of 361 square meters, an apartment in Kyiv, and a garage box — mostly obtained under gift agreements.
“Luxurious” wardrobe of the vice-rector.
An analysis of 26 Kostyria’s photos from social networks shows: in nine of them there is the same Graff ring with an estimated value of 700 thousand euros. A Rolex watch appears three times, valued at 300 thousand euros.
Next — a motorboat (€800 thousand), a Bentley (€240 thousand), a fur coat (€30 thousand), Cartier earrings (€100–250 thousand), a Dior jacket and bag, an Hermès scarf. The photos also show less status items but no less telling wardrobe details — including a Gucci jacket valued at about 120 thousand hryvnias and bags from various brands, including another Dior worth about 250 thousand hryvnias. Meanwhile in 2023 the Universal Bank filed a lawsuit against Kostyria for debt exceeding 11,5 thousand dollars. The land is given in hectares, and the bank debt remains unpaid.
According to Stop Corruption TV journalists, since the full-scale invasion began Kostyria has been outside Ukraine for a total of 3 years and 9 months, while continuing to be employed by KNUKiM. When asked whether she was in Ukraine while formally holding the position, the university representative answered cautiously: “It’s hard to say where she was… She could have provided consultations online.” An official request requesting disclosure of payments and workloads of the university promised to process it “in a timely manner” — and it took the legally maximum allowed time to respond.
If the facts of unwarranted salary accrual for the period of actual absence from work are confirmed, the actions of university officials and the educator herself could fall under part 5 of article 191 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine — embezzlement, misappropriation of property, or possessing it through abuse of office in especially large amounts.
Also read: a ring for 700 thousand euros and a dissertation with 190 “borrowed” pages: wealth and the career of Kostyria the vice-rector.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Проректорка КНУКіМ Костиря: каблучка Graff за 700 тисяч євро, BMW за 62,5 тисячі та несплачений борг банку". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: NARDEP 24.
