The Moscow City Court has agreed to change a measure of restraint to Natalia Gulevich, 50, a business woman, who is kept in custody, for a bail of 100 million roubles (some 3.5 million dollars). The sum is without precedent in Russia. Ms. Gulevich is accused of stealing 590 million roubles from Nomos Bank. The lawyers of Gulevich, who suffers from a number of grave diseases, say that the sum is too big for her family, especially in view of the fact that the money should be raised before November 7. So, most probably, the record-big bail will not be deposited.

The Moscow City Court satisfied on Wednesday the appeal of the lawyers of Gulevich, who asked to change a measure of restraint for her for any other one, which would not involve keeping in custody, the Kommersant writes. According to the court ruling, the investigators did not explain convincingly why the accused, who had spent 11 months in prison, should remain in custody. The court took into account her health condition, because she suffers from several grave diseases. Her kidneys and urinary bladder are not functioning properly, and she cannot do without a catheter.

According to the Kommersant, the sum of the bail came as a shock both for Ms. Gulevich and her lawyers. Anna Stavitskaya, her lawyer, described the court ruling as humiliation. “Even if the Gulevich family has that much money, it is absolutely impossible to raise the sum by November 7, considering the holiday,” she said. According to Valery, the husband of Natalia Gulevich, even if they mortgage all the property that the family has, they can raise no more than five percent of the sum.