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Investigators to insist on arrest of the fifth suspect in the criminal case over the theft of Defense Ministry's real estate

Deputy director general of the Slavyanka company Konstantin Lapshin was questioned as a suspect on Tuesday
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, January 16 (Itar-Tass) — Investigators will insist on the arrest of deputy director general of the Slavyanka company Konstantin Lapshin, the fifth suspect in the criminal case over the theft of funds allocated for maintaining Defense Ministry's real estate, Investigative Committee /SK/ spokesman Vladimir Markin told Itar-Tass on Wednesday.

"The investigators will ask the court to arrest the head of Slavyanka's department for current repairs, deputy director general Konstantin Lapshin," Markin said.

Lapshin was questioned as a suspect on Tuesday.

Earlier on Wednesday, a court sanctioned the arrest of Nikolai Ryabykh, acting chief of the Defense Ministry's economic department, who the investigators said had signed fake documents on maintenance works at a building in Moscow's Kolymazhny Lane.

Three criminal case over theft of money by Slavyanka officials have been opened. The funds were allocated by the Defense Ministry for repairs and maintenance of its buildings. The damage caused by their actions is estimated at over 400 million roubles.

Three persons have been arrested in the case: chief accountant Yulia Rotanova, Slavyanka director general and founder of the Security and Communications company Alexander Yelkin, as well as incumbent Security and Communications company director Andrei Luganisky. They are now in custody.

The Moscow City court refused to free Yelkin on a 20-million-rouble bail.

In December 2010, the Defense Ministry and the Security and Communications company signed a contract of services to maintain buildings and structures belonging to the Ministry. Under the contract, the commercial organization pledged to maintain the service lines and clean the rooms inside the buildings and the adjacent area.

Among the facilities due for maintenance was a building at the address Kolymazhny Lane, House 14. Another state contract envisioned its renovation with major overhaul of all service lines in the period from February 2011 through July 2012.

Although no maintenance works were carried out within the designated period, officials of the Defence Ministry, Slavyanka and Security and Communications signed fictitious acts of completed works and the bills, in accordance with which business persons illegally drew 52.6 million roubles of income, the SK said.