All news

Investigative Committee ends questioning of MP Ponomarev

The next questioning is scheduled for May 16

MOSCOW, May 7 (Itar-Tass) - Russia’s Investigative Committee (SK) has finished questioning member of the State Duma lower house of parliament Ilya Ponomarev.

Ponomarev told reporters that the next questioning is scheduled for May 16.

The MP from A Just Russia party was summoned for interrogation as a witness in the criminal case over large scale embezzlement against Senior Vice President of the Skolkovo Foundation Alexei Beltyukov, the SK press service said earlier.

The Skolkovo Innovation Centre was created in 2010 to conduct scientific research in the priority spheres of technological development: information, biomedical, energy efficient, nuclear and space technologies. The construction of the innovation town will take about 5 years and will cost about 100 billion roubles. The funding is based on state-private partnership. By 2014 it is planned to fully create the industrial park - a key facility of Skolkovo.

According to the Investigative Committee, “the investigation has established that in the period from February 2011 to February 2012 Alexei Beltyukov illegally paid 750 thousand US dollars from the Skolkovo Foundation’s funds to State Duma member Ilya Ponomarev.” “Beltyukov tried to disguise such a major waste by entering into contracts with Ponomarev on behalf of the Foundation. According to these contracts, Ponomarev for 300 thousand US dollars was to deliver 10 lectures in several Russian cities and for 450 thousand US dollars was to perform a research project,” the SK explained.

The SK Main Investigation Department opened a criminal case against Alexei Beltyukov under Article 160, part 4 of the RF Criminal Code (large scale embezzlement). The criminal case was opened based on the materials of an inquiry in connection with a request by Russian State Duma member Vladimir Zhirinovsky to check the actions of his colleague MP Ilya Ponomarev for the presence of elements of crime under Article 128.1, part 5 (slander) and Article 289 of the RF Criminal Code (illegal conduct of entrepreneurial activity).

“All the circumstances are being verified within the criminal case investigation, the information about the lectures actually delivered by Ponomarev is being checked, as well as the scientific value, novelty, validity of research proposals made by Ponomarev in the research work are being examined,” the SK said earlier.