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Oleksandr Bozhko is applying for the position of deputy head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), and he has been involved in high-profile criminal proceedings, previously participated in a competition, and faces questions about declared real estate.
Deputy head of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol Oleksandr Bozhko is participating in the competition for the position of deputy head of the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office. His name previously appeared in high-profile cases, including those involving former Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration Andriy Portnov and Ternopil gunsmith Sviatoslav Zvir. StopKor analysts examined the prosecutor’s career, his asset declarations, and publications about the official’s activities.
According to StopKor’s analytical briefing on candidates for the deputy head of SAPO, researchers identified a number of circumstances requiring additional explanation. These include discrepancies between information about rented apartments and data in property registers, prior public accusations against the prosecutor, and his participation in a SAPO competition in 2021.
Oleksandr Bozhko’s career: from Zhytomyr region to the Crimea prosecutor’s office
Oleksandr Serhiyovych Bozhko was born on 10 November 1988 in Bashtanka, Mykolaiv region. In 2011 he graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, after which he began a career in the prosecution authorities.
From 2012 he worked in various positions in the prosecutor’s office of Zhytomyr region, and in 2016 he moved to the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine.
In April 2020 Bozhko became the acting deputy prosecutor of Ternopil region. By September of the same year he had taken the post of first deputy head of the Ternopil regional prosecutor’s office.
In 2025 he was appointed deputy head of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. According to the analytical briefing, he holds this position during the current SAPO competition.
The Portnov case and a prior SAPO competition
One of the most high-profile episodes of Bozhko’s professional activity was the case of Andriy Portnov, former deputy head of the Presidential Administration during Viktor Yanukovych’s presidency.
As StopKor analysts note, since 2019 Bozhko exercised procedural leadership in the proceedings related to Portnov.
Amid that confrontation, the prosecutor reported receiving threats. According to information cited in the analytical briefing, his family was provided with security. Later Bozhko filed a claim with the European Court of Human Rights.
In 2021 the prosecutor already attempted to pass the competition to the Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office, but was eliminated from the selection process.
At the time, media advanced a version that the decision could have been related to Portnov’s influence and his conflict with the prosecutor. At the same time, the analytical briefing contains no documentary confirmation of this version or an established causal link between the Portnov case and the competition result.
The case of gunsmith Sviatoslav Zvir: the court acquitted the volunteer
Another high-profile episode mentioned in StopKor’s research concerns Ternopil gunsmith Sviatoslav Zvir, who assisted the Defense Forces of Ukraine.
In 2025 Bozhko found himself at the center of a public scandal over the criminal prosecution of the volunteer. According to analysts, the case caused public resonance, and people familiar with his activities in support of Ukrainian servicemen spoke out in Zvir’s defense.
Ultimately, the court fully acquitted the gunsmith. In addition, the court initiated a petition to the President of Ukraine to award Sviatoslav Zvir a state honor.
Analysts classified this episode as a risk factor in the candidate’s professional biography. At the same time, the briefing does not cite a court decision establishing personal unlawful conduct by Bozhko during this proceeding.
Accusations regarding excise losses of 32 million UAH
The research also references a publication by Politerno in 2025 about a criminal proceeding concerning possible budget losses from tobacco excise duties.
The amount discussed was 32 million UAH and the case involved local entrepreneur Andriy Yarema.
According to the analytical briefing, the publication’s authors accused Bozhko of deliberately dragging out or effectively blocking the investigation.
However, these statements remain allegations published in the media. The analysts’ materials do not contain confirmation that a court or competent authority established corresponding violations by the prosecutor.
Another episode concerns 2021, when bloggers publicly accused Bozhko of unfairly allocating service apartments among employees of the Ternopil regional prosecutor’s office. The briefing likewise contains no information about findings of violations following checks of these claims.
Apartment in Orange Park residential complex: an investment of 697 thousand UAH
A separate section of StopKor’s analytical briefing is devoted to the prosecutor’s and his family’s real estate.
According to the declaration for 2025, on 2 September Bozhko invested in the construction of an apartment of 41 sq. m in Kriukivshchyna, Kyiv region.
Analysts determined that this concerns the Orange Park residential complex. The object was identified via cadastral numbers and information about the developer company listed in the declaration.
The cost of the future apartment listed by the prosecutor is 697 thousand UAH. That is roughly 17 thousand UAH per square meter. The briefing does not contain an independent appraisal of the market value of this object on the date of investment.
In addition, Bozhko declared a share in his wife’s apartment in Kyiv. The dwelling’s total area is 84,7 sq. m, one quarter of which has belonged to Kateryna Bozhko since 2005.
Thus, the candidate’s declaration reflects both property rights to housing in a new development near Kyiv and real estate owned by his wife.
Rented housing in Kyiv and Ternopil: discrepancies analysts found
The two rented apartments raised the most questions during the analysis of asset information.
On 28 August 2025 Bozhko, according to the declaration, received use of an apartment in Kyiv with an area of 46,6 sq. m.
Its owner is listed as Khrystyna Babkina. However, when checking property registers, StopKor analysts did not find any property in the capital owned by a person with the same surname, first name, and patronymic.
Instead, the registers showed property for this person only in Sumy region. Researchers also noted that the owner’s full name has a high uniqueness index — 99%.
In the declaration the prosecutor indicated the apartment’s value at 320 thousand UAH, but did not specify the amount of rent.
The other case concerns Ternopil, where the Bozhko family rented an apartment while he worked at the regional prosecutor’s office.
The area of that dwelling was 73 sq. m, and the owner was listed as Nataliia Kravets.
According to analysts’ checks, as of October 2026 this person owned three apartments in Ternopil with areas of 54,6, 43,7 and 44,9 sq. m. The apartment with an area of 73 sq. m was not found among the registered objects.
The briefing also notes that other law enforcement officers who were not prosecutors previously rented housing from this owner.
Bozhko’s income: 1,9 million UAH salary and relocation compensation
In 2025 Bozhko declared approximately 1,9 million UAH in salary.
Of that amount, about 1,2 million UAH he received from the Ternopil regional prosecutor’s office, and another 700 thousand UAH — from the Prosecutor’s Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol.
Additionally, the prosecutor was paid 143 thousand UAH in compensation related to relocation for the new job.
The official’s wife declared 25 thousand UAH in child social benefits.
At the same time, the family’s cash savings declared were relatively small. The couple listed 20 thousand UAH, 200 US dollars and 150 euros.
Thus, the family’s total declared receipts for 2025 amounted to over 2 million UAH when accounting for the prosecutor’s salary, relocation compensation and social benefits.
At the same time, in September of that year Bozhko declared an investment in the construction of an apartment for 697 thousand UAH.
What is known about the prosecutor’s wife’s assets and professional activity
The candidate’s wife, Kateryna Bozhko, née Burlachenko, previously also worked in the prosecution authorities.
According to analysts, at least since 2015 she held a position at Kyiv Local Prosecutor’s Office No. 3. She was dismissed on 9 August 2017, after which she ceased to be a subject of public declaration.
Later Kateryna Bozhko changed professional direction. In February 2025 she completed master’s studies at the Kyiv Institute of Gestalt and Psychodrama and works in the field of psychology.
Researchers also found information about her prior entrepreneurial activity. Preliminary data indicate that in 2019 she registered as a sole proprietor (FOP), with the main activity being work with textile products. She ceased entrepreneurial activity in 2021.
In addition to a share in the Kyiv apartment, the prosecutor’s wife owns a Ravon R2 Elegant AT car, 2020 model year, purchased in 2022.
According to the estimate cited in the analytical briefing, the average cost of such a car at the time of the research was about 6,5 thousand US dollars.
This is the only car listed in the Bozhko family’s declaration.
One more detail concerns a trademark. According to analysts, in 2020 a person with the same surname, first name, and patronymic registered trademark No. 273028 related to goods and services in the production and sale of clothing.
Relatives’ real estate and use of family apartments
StopKor’s research also analyzed real estate of the wife’s relatives.
In particular, it concerns an apartment in Kyiv with an area of 56,7 sq. m that the Bozhko family used previously.
Old declarations of Kateryna Bozhko indicated that the dwelling was held in shared partial ownership by three people. One-third of the apartment belonged to Kateryna herself, one-third to her mother Oksana Burlachenko, and one-third to Illia Burlachenko, whom analysts identified as the probable brother of the prosecutor’s wife.
According to the research, Oksana Burlachenko previously engaged in entrepreneurial activity in the rental and operation of real estate. She registered the corresponding sole proprietor (FOP) in 2008 and ceased the activity in 2018.
Analysts also investigated information about Kateryna Bozhko’s father, but due to the large number of people with the same surname, first name and patronymic they could not reliably identify him in open registers.
Therefore, researchers do not link information about a person with the same name to the prosecutor’s family regarding possible involvement in criminal proceedings.
Publications about political views: analysts found no confirmation
Some local media previously circulated claims about alleged pro-Russian views of Oleksandr Bozhko and possible ties of his father to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate.
However, StopKor analysts treated these reports critically.
The briefing explicitly states that such publications show signs of targeted discrediting of the official and do not contain sufficient evidence.
Researchers also noted that there is practically no verified information in the public domain about the prosecutor’s parents and other relatives.
The analytical briefing does not contain explanations from Oleksandr Bozhko himself regarding the identified discrepancies in asset information. It also does not include results of official checks that would confirm violations on his part.
Previously, StopKor reported on other candidates for the deputy head position at SAPO about whom anti-corruption activists published questions regarding assets, income, and professional activity.
The editorial team also examined the biography of Sviatoslav Onishchuk, who is participating in the competition after a negative expert opinion from the Constitutional Court regarding compliance with the criterion of high moral qualities.
Document: PDF proof of the original version of the news item "Від справи Портнова до конкурсу в САП: що відомо про прокурора Олександра Божка та питання до його декларацій". It records the publication content at the moment of the first scan, the preservation date and the source: StopKor.
