The regional administration reported that Ekaterina Gubareva, formerly the deputy head of the Kherson regional government, has moved on to work in another region of Russia.
The administration noted that E. Yu Gubareva’s duties within the Kherson government have concluded. Its powers were temporarily redistributed among other officials.
Gubareva herself indicated that her next line of work will center on digitalization.
“Moscow hosts the digitization effort,” she stated, without naming a specific location.
Late November brought the appointment of a new head of government for the Kherson region. Andrey Alekseenko, who previously led the Cabinet of Ministers in the Kharkiv region, assumed the post.
Gubareva joined the government early in the region’s alignment with Russia.
“Under Ekaterina Gubareva’s leadership, the social-benefit recipients database, which had been disrupted by actions of the Ukrainian authorities in spring 2022, was restored. The Kherson government staff wished Ekaterina Yuryevna success in her new role,” a government spokesperson stated.
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Gubareva oversaw digitalization and social-policy issues within the Kherson administration. The TASS agency also reported that she left the region after the September 30 referendum, citing a regional-government representative. According to TASS, she ceased to perform her duties and participated in government work, remaining only in title as deputy governor.
Gubareva’s husband, Pavel, said the official was “shocked by a HIMARS strike that hit the Kherson administration and is receiving treatment.”
On November 16, he announced that his wife had disappeared. Later, TASS and RT claimed she was detained in a criminal case tied to an economic crime. A Telegram channel named “Attention, news” referenced a claim about a 60-million-ruble budget allocation.
“The amount was at least 60 million, perhaps more. They chose to shut it down and tried to negotiate. He even went to Moscow,” the Telegram channel reported, citing a regional-government source.
According to the channel, Gubareva was dismissed and went to Moscow to seek alternate employment but was eventually detained.
On November 18, Pavel Gubarev announced his wife’s release “in agreement with the investigation.” He did not reveal the case details or charges but warned that he would share the full story if his name is repeatedly discredited. He spoke of maintaining personal integrity against attacks, a stance he described as resisting false narratives.
On December 13, a TASS source stated that Gubareva was under house arrest. The source noted that she remained on a list but had not yet been formally dismissed; the status was described as under investigation.
Gubareva declared she was not under house arrest. “I am healthy and free. No one has accused me of embezzlement,” she posted on Telegram.
Her husband, the Kherson region’s vice-presidential aide, denied claims of house arrest. “That is not true. The case against him collapsed,” he said, promising to reveal the full account of the criminal case against his wife, while asserting he would not shy away from the truth as new information surfaced. Gubareva reportedly refused further roles within the Kherson government.
Subsequently, Pavel Gubarev appeared to temper his stance. “There will be no simple story,” he wrote, attributing hesitation to a self-preservation instinct.
Gubareva took the post of deputy head of the Kherson regional government in June 2022. Previously, she had served as a member of parliament in the Donetsk People’s Republic and as deputy head of its Foreign Affairs Ministry. In October, Ukraine’s Security Service accused her of “collaboration with an aggressor state” and “collaboration activities.”