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The evidence collected by the investigating authorities of the Main Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the city of Moscow has been recognized by the court as sufficient for sentencing Yuri Khokhlov, a former adviser to the head of the Federal Agency for Fisheries at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation. He has been found guilty of committing a crime under Part 3 of Article 30, Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (attempted fraud on an especially large scale).

The investigation and the court have established that Yuri Khokhlov, who served as adviser to the head of the Federal Agency for Fisheries at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation, not earlier than April 2016, having received information about the desire of the victim to take a managerial position in the newly created division of the Federal Agency for Fisheries in the Far Eastern Federal District of the Russian Federation, entered with accomplices into a criminal conspiracy aimed at theft by deception of the victim’s funds in the amount of at least USD 7 million. In doing so, Khokhlov and his accomplices persistently tried to convince the man that they could ensure his appointment.

The accomplices were detained during the transfer of the first part of the funds in the amount of USD 300,000, which took place under the control of the officers of the FSB of Russia.

In April 2018, four defendants were convicted and sentenced to real terms in prison, whereas Khokhlov managed to escape and went into hiding outside the Russian Federation on the territory of Cyprus.

In February 2017, Khokhlov was charged in absentia with pre-trial restrictions in the form of detention; he was put on the international wanted list. On December 6, 2020, Khokhlov was extradited to Russian law enforcement agencies and taken to Moscow.

Despite the active opposition of the defendant, in the course of the investigation of the criminal case, through investigative and procedural actions, Khokhlov was completely exposed in the crime he was accused of. Multiple forensic examinations, including linguistic and phonoscopic examinations were carried out.

By the verdict of the Presnensky District Court, Yuri Khokhlov was sentenced to 4 years and 8 months in prison to be served in a general regime correctional colony. Taking into account the detention term, the court ruled that the sentence had been served.