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A former lawyer, who was charged in absentia with large-scale bribery, is being extradited to Russia

Former lawyer Alexey Prigoda was detained on the territory of the Kingdom of Spain and extradited to Russia. In December 2015, the Main Military Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of Russia initiated criminal proceedings against him, as well as against the former military prosecutor of the Ufa garrison, Vladimir Ovchinnikov (who was in that position from 2011 to 2013) and the former head of the federal state institution "Ufa apartment-exploitation unit district". Vyacheslav Bollo criminal case on the grounds of a crime under Part 6 of Article 290 of the Criminal Code (bribery committed on an especially large scale). Prigoda will be taken to the territory of Russia in the near future.

However, on January 9, 2016 Prigoda fled from the preliminary investigation authorities, having left for Spain. In February of the same year, he was charged in absentia and put on an international wanted list. The court ordered that Prigoda be placed in custody as a measure of restraint.

In March 2017, the Kingdom of Spain reported the arrest of Prigoda. Based on the materials of the military investigation submitted to the competent authorities of the Kingdom of Spain, a decision was made to extradite him. Prigoda, against whom a measure of restraint in the form of bail was applied on Spanish territory, fled. The Spanish law enforcement authorities detained him again as early as February of this year.

During the preliminary investigation it was established that in 2011 FGU "Ufa District Apartment and operational part" signed 2 lease agreements with "SU-10 Group" LLC for 133 thousand square meters of land in Ufa whereby the commercial organization was granted the right to use it for the construction of multi-storey residential houses with the subsequent sale of the property in order to derive profit.

Given that the aforementioned land plots were federally owned and held by the Russian Ministry of Defense on a permanent (indefinite) use basis, Bollo had no authority to lease them out. Ovchinnikov, knowing about this law violation, did not stop it. Valery Mansurov, General Director of SU-10 Group of Companies, promised to pay 140 million rubles for these actions and omissions. 

In order to give the appearance of legality of bribery he concluded 2 sham contracts with Prigoda for the provision of legal services at a total cost of 140 million rubles. According to them, the lawyer was to carry out a full range of work on the elaboration of documents on the development of the aforementioned land plots, as well as the necessary approvals, the signing of contracts and the settlement of relations in accordance with current legislation.

Between February and August 2012, Mansurov transferred more than 16.4 million rubles to Prigoda, which he shared with Ovchinnikov and Bollo. During the next two years the General Director of the construction company transferred to the members of the organized criminal group more than 97 million rubles, received from the sale of the apartments in the houses built. They did not receive the remaining sum of the bribe in the amount of over 26 million rubles as the inspection of legality of usage of the federally owned land plots by "SU-10 Group of Companies" LLC commenced.

During Prigoda's evasion of preliminary investigation, the Bar Association of the Republic of Bashkortostan, of which he was a member, decided to expel him.

In the near future investigative actions will be carried out with him.  

The criminal case against Ovchinnikov was terminated on non-rehabilitative grounds due to his death.

The court decision found Bollo guilty of committing crimes under Part 6 of Article 290 and Paragraph C of Part 3 of Article 286 of the Criminal Code (abuse of power, committed with grave consequences). He was sentenced to 11 years of imprisonment and also deprived of the right to hold public office and local self-government bodies for 3 years. Due to the convict's illness, the court released him from serving the sentence. Criminal prosecution of Mansurov was terminated in connection with his active repentance. The supervisory body agreed with the procedural decision.