News

Main Investigations Directorate of the Russia’s Investigative Committee has initiated a criminal case over signs of a crime under part 1 of article 286 of the RF Criminal Code against former Director of State Property Department of Kirov Region Konstantin Arzamastsev over his exceeding of official powers in selling state regional property.

The said fact was revealed by investigators during inquiry into the case against A. Navalny and P. Ofitserov over embezzlement of property of Kirovles company.

Investigators have established that in autumn 2010 Arzamastsev, being Director of State Property Department of Kirov Region, signed a direction on privatization of owned by the region 25.5% of shares of OAO Urzhumsky distillery in the amount of 22,698 nominal equities by selling them at the auction at considerably deflated price of 95,370,000 rubles. The official knew that the distillery was one of the most successful and profitable enterprises not only in Kirov Region, but in Russia as well and the real market price of the state share in the distillery was no less than 197 million rubles. Despite that fact Arzamastsev, acting on behalf of Kirov Region, concluded with the winner of the bidding for selling the distillery – a CEO of a commercial organization in Kirov – a sale contract on the shares of the distillery at the price of resulted from the bidding of 98,370,000 rubles.

The deliberate action of Arzamastsev, namely issuing the direction and concluding the sale contract led to considerable violation of property interests of the state and people protected by law, which resulted in deficiency by the state of 98,630,000 rubles of profit.

During investigation of this case investigators are going to check on involvement in the crime other officials independent of their rank up to senior officials of the region, including former advisor to the Governor of Kirov Region Aleksey Navalny, who according to investigators, with other persons tried to enter the Board of Directors of Urzhumsky distillery.