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Skrynnik not refuse from giving testimony

This is the first interrogation for Skrynnik, she did not turn up for interrogations before over an illness or the staying abroad
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, February 13 (Itar-Tass) – Former Russian agriculture minister Yelena Skrynnik did not refuse from giving testimony in the criminal case over massive budget misappropriation in Rosagroleasing and is replying to the questions of the detective, the Russian Interior Ministry told Itar-Tass on Wednesday.

Skrynnik did not give the written testimony (former Russian defence minister Anatoly Serdyukov gave the written testimony in the Oboronservis fraud case before) and is replying the questions of the detectives.

“This is the first interrogation for Skrynnik, she did not turn up for interrogations before over an illness or the staying abroad, therefore, the detectives have many questions to her,” the ministry noted.

It was reported before that Skrynnik was summoned to the detective with a summon plea and turned up for interrogation voluntarily with her lawyer. She was interrogated as a witness in the criminal case over massive misappropriation of the allocations, which were made from the Rosagroleasing budget for the needs of the agrarian and industrial sector.

The detectives found that from 2007 to 2009 Rosagroleasing concluded several financial leasing contracts with commercial organizations, which were established by Oleg Donskikh, who is the former head of a territorial branch of the company in the Central Federal District and the head of the agricultural department in the Lipetsk regional authorities.

The main department for economic security and counteraction to corruption of the Russian Interior Ministry noted that Donskikh, who misused his personal ties among high-ranking officials of Rosagroleasing, lobbied the state allocations for their further misappropriation. Then the chief executives of the lessees were participating in the making of the acts, which verified the delivery of the equipment for the distilleries and the live stock breeding farms to the Lipetsk Region, as well as the mounting and the pre-start operations for the equipment.

“The results of the investigation exposed that the lessees lack the equipment, and the budget allocations were partially cashed and misappropriated. The damages to the state exceeded 600 million roubles,” the ministry noted.

Meanwhile, the chief executives of the commercial enterprises in the Lipetsk Region Sergei Burdovsky and Igor Konyakhin were found involved in the criminal scheme. The Interior Ministry noted that they were accused under Article 159 Part 4 of the Russian Criminal Code for massive fraud. Donskikh was charged with fraud in absentia and was put on the federal wanted list.