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Investigators find US dollars, gold in safe of ex-Economy Minister Ulyukayev

Searches were also conducted at the ex-minister’s countryside house outside Moscow where detectives seized $300,000

Alexey Ulyukayev Sergei Fadeichev/TASS

Alexey Ulyukayev

© Sergei Fadeichev/TASS

MOSCOW, October 5. /TASS/. Investigators found four pairs of watches, jewelry, precious metal ingots, over $250,000 and an instruction form on trust management during searches of the office of former Economy Minister Alexey Ulyukayev accused of extorting a $2 mln bribe, court materials indicated on Thursday.

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The materials are based on a protocol of the search made public by the prosecution at Moscow’s Zamoskvoretsky Court on Thursday.

"When the safe was opened, the investigators found gold coins, several dozen bankbooks, $250,000 in cash, Belarusian rubles, gold ingots and jewelry," the prosecutor said.

According to an expert study, the wrist watches are estimated at 28,000-800,000 rubles ($486-13,900).As the prosecutor said, the safe in Ulyukayev’s office held about five 1kg gold coins and a 3kg coin. During the personal search of the ex-Economy Minister, the investigators seized a mobile phone and the minister’s ID. During the searches in Ulyukayev’s apartment on Minskaya Street in western Moscow, the investigators seized a computer and a memory card.

Searches were also conducted at the ex-minister’s countryside house outside Moscow where detectives seized $300,000 and also documents certifying the purchase of VTB Bank shares by members of the Ulyukayev family.

Ulyukayev was Russia’s first federal minister to have been detained while in office. In November 2016, Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Ulyukayev over the loss of confidence. Ulyukayev is currently under house arrest in his apartment in Moscow.

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