Moscow court arrests Russian businessman on charges of bribing deputy defense minister

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - A court in Moscow arrested on Thursday Russian businessman Alexandr Fomin on charges of bribing Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov.

At a hearing in Moscow, the Basmanny District Court ruled to arrest Fomin, the co-owner of Olimpsitistroy construction company, for 30 days.

Earlier Thursday, the court ordered a ban on the use of real estate and assets, and the freezing of bank accounts owned by Ivanov and his relatives.

On Wednesday, the court arrested the deputy defense minister and Sergey Borodin, Ivanov's suspected associate in bribery.

According to investigators, Borodin, being in friendly relations with Ivanov, who was supervising the construction and overhaul of Defense Ministry facilities, entered into a criminal conspiracy with third parties to receive bribes.

Ivanov faces allegations of grand bribery that surpassed 1 million rubles ($10,700), which is considered "particularly significant" under Russian law and fraught with a potential prison sentence of up to 15 years.

Ivanov's lawyer Denis Baluyev said his client was detained at his workplace and pleaded not guilty, noting that "money does not appear at all as the subject of a bribe."

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin had been briefed on the situation, with Defense Minister Sergey Shoygu being forewarned about the impending detentions.

He declined to comment on reports alleging that Ivanov is also under suspicion of high treason, advising to await official statements regarding the matter.

The Russian state news agency TASS reported that Ivanov was removed from his post by Shoygu's order, citing a Defense Ministry source.

Before being appointed the deputy defense minister in May 2016, Ivanov worked in management positions in governmental bodies and state companies.