Russian Deputy Defense Minister arrested on corruption charges

NOS News•today, 01:12

A senior Russian defense official has been arrested on suspicion of taking bribes. This is what Russian state media write. It concerns Timur Ivanov, one of the twelve deputy ministers of defense.

Ivanov was put on the sanctions list by both the United States and the European Union shortly after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian state news agency RIA Novosti writes, based on Kremlin spokesman Peskov, that Defense Minister Shoigu has now been informed of the arrest of his confidant.

Before becoming deputy minister in 2016, Ivanov already worked closely with Shoigu. For example, he was deputy governor of the Moscow region when Shoigu became governor of that region in 2012. Shortly afterwards he followed Shoigu to the Ministry of Defense.

No details have been made about the amount of bribes Ivanov allegedly took, and for what.

In his position, Ivanov oversees, among other things, the real estate and construction projects of the Russian army, writes the AP news agency, and, according to Russian media, was also in charge of the construction projects in the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol.

Mariupol was occupied by Russia in May 2022, after the port city was largely destroyed by heavy bombing.

The Russians began building residential areas on the destroyed land shortly after occupying the city. President Putin personally visited such a construction site in Mariupol in March last year.

At the end of 2022, Ivanov was in the news due to an investigation by the anti-corruption organization of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in February.

That investigation revealed that Ivanov led a life of luxury, while he could not afford it according to his official income. The investigation suggests that Ivanov may have earned a lot from construction projects in Mariupol. It is not clear whether he has now been arrested for this reason.

Ivanov faces a prison sentence of up to fifteen years.