During its meeting, the city officially removed Anton Karavajev, the director of the hobby-school located in the Lasnamäe district. Karavajev submitted his resignation after the Tallinn Department of Education and the city's internal audit unit investigated activities at the institution and identified several violations.

Tallinn Deputy Mayor Andrei Kante said the city government received multiple complaints about the school's operations in recent months. To clarify the circumstances, the education department inspected the organization of instruction, while the internal audit unit investigated possible transactions with related parties.

The inspection found that instruction was being conducted by individuals who did not meet language proficiency requirements. Meanwhile, the city's education information system listed different individuals as instructors — people who were not actually involved in teaching, Kante said.

"The documentation did not correspond to the actual situation," he noted.

A serious violation was also identified where instruction was declared as being conducted in Estonian, but in reality it was not, Kante said.

After investigating possible transactions involving related parties, the internal audit concluded that the allegations outlined in the complaints were substantiated. The police have also been informed of the circumstances.

When Karavajev was given the opportunity to comment on the findings, he instead submitted a termination notice for his employment contract.

The city subsequently terminated his employment, and the government wants law enforcement authorities to assess what happened, Kante said.

"This is a very regrettable case, and it is important that we learn from the situation and draw the appropriate conclusions in order to prevent similar incidents in the future," Kante said.

Jašin: This is retaliation by the Center Party

Former Tallinn Deputy Mayor for Education Aleksei Jašin (Eesti 200) wrote on social media that Karavajev's dismissal is retaliation by the current city leadership.

"Sergei Ptšjolkin, the former head of the Tondiraba Hobby School, lost his job in 2024 after comparing the Forest Brothers, among other things, to terrorists on social media. The school got a new director, under whose leadership the share of Estonian‑language clubs was finally increased and more project funding was brought in," Jašin said.

"Meanwhile, Center Party member Ptšjolkin engaged in systematic harassment of the new director on social media and filed more than 20 complaints with the Education Department. Now the authorities are finally back in power and can exact their sweet revenge," he added.

"The party spoke through Deputy Mayor for Education Kante, claiming that the new director committed systematic and serious violations. In Estonia, there are few education leaders who could not be removed from office if there were a strong enough desire—fully complying with all state and local regulations is nearly impossible. These 'serious violations' should be examined under a magnifying glass," Jašin said.

This story was updated to add comments from Former Tallinn Deputy Mayor for Education Aleksei Jašin.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and X and never miss an update!