In a noteworthy development, the Arkhangelsk Lomonosovsky District Court ordered the detention of Andrei Bloshchinsky, the Deputy Governor of the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, placing him in a pre-trial detention center. The detention pertains to allegations connected with a bribe amounting to 2 million rubles. This information was reported by TASS, referencing statements from the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Arkhangelsk region and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug.
According to the court, Bloshchinsky will remain in custody for a period of two months, with the term ending on May 29. The Arkhangelsk District Court informed the agency of the ruling, outlining the extended pre-trial restrictions now placed on the official while the investigation continues.
Earlier, there were statements that officers from Russia’s Federal Security Service were involved in the Arkhangelsk region’s case file concerning the deputy head of the Nenets Autonomous Okrug. The authorities indicated suspicions of large-scale bribery tied to official duties.
Preliminary investigators allege that the suspect, acting through a middleman, sought a bribe from a representative of a commercial entity in the amount of 10 percent of the profits of a company under a government contract executed under national health program initiatives. In the course of this scheme, the intermediary allegedly delivered a bribe totaling around 2 million rubles to the deputy governor.
The criminal case has been opened against the deputy governor under Part 6 of Article 290 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which covers taking a bribe by an official on a particularly large scale. The investigation continues as prosecutors and investigators work to establish all relevant facts and verify the circumstances surrounding the alleged payments and their link to official duties.