Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation reveals Medvedev's secret dacha

Oppositionist leader Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation published the results of its investigation concerning Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s secret dacha on Thursday. The cottage is the estate of Milowka, located one kilometer from the center of Ples in the Ivanovo region.

Though it was previously known that Medvedev and his family regularly visit Milowka, photographs of the residence, which is surrounded by a six-meter wall, had never been published before.

In his blog, Navalny published aerial images of the residence. The oppositionist maintains that the estate occupies not two hectares as claimed by the media previously, but 80. The territory includes a private marina (land adjacent to the Volga River), a ski slope, three helipads, a few houses, a hotel and other buildings, and park-like facilities, including a giant chessboard and a house for ducks.

The historic manor of Milowka itself is enclosed by an additional internal wall. The Foundation estimates that the cost of restorating the estate and of building the rest of the complex at 25-30 billion rubles (approximately $385.73 to $462.87 billion).

According to Navalny, the territory was acquired by a foundation called Dar, using money provided by the shareholders of the company Novatek. The charitable contribution is estimated at 33 billion rubles (approxi,ately $509.16 million). These funds were also used to fund the restoration. Dar, says Navalny, is closely associated with the Prime Minister’s wife Svetlana Medvedeva. The head of it board of advisors is also Medvedev’s former classmate Ilya Eliseev.

• After 2011, the complex was transferred to Russia's Foundation for the Preservation of Historical and Cultural Heritage. The dacha is, therefore, not owned by Medvedev, but the Prime Minister vacations there on a regular basis, as evidenced by the geotags of his photographs on Instagram.
• Navalny sees the fact that the territory was acquired by a foundation affiliated with Medvedev as a sign of corruption.