And from the fields comes

The Ministry of Culture asked for the initiation of a criminal case of theft against the leaders of the Seventh Studio. The authenticity of a letter published on Friday in social networks in the name of the head of the Main Directorate of the IC in Moscow Alexander Drymanov, signed by Deputy Minister Nikolai Malakov in the department, reports Rain.

The document dated May 23 contains a request to bring to justice "persons who, as we became aware of the subsidies," allocated by the Ministry of Culture to support the "Seventh Studio" Platform project. It was on this day that searches were held at the founder of the studio of Kirill Serebrennikov and the Gogol Center.

"The letter was signed after numerous messages about the actions of the investigating authorities spread in the information space," the Ministry of Culture said in the rain request. It is emphasized that such an appeal is a standard procedure used in cases where large material damage can be caused to the state.

"Given that the department in 2011-2014 stood out subsidies aimed at supporting the development and popularization of contemporary art within the framework of the Platform project, a reasonable decision was made to contact the investigating authorities," the Ministry of Culture noted.

On May 26, the head of the Ministry of Culture Vladimir Medinsky said that the department knew about the investigation of the alleged theft in the Seventh Studio. “I want to emphasize: this story has no relation to tastes and estimates, as well as creativity as such. Yes, this situation is very upset. Like any scandal in culture. I hope the investigation will be carried out as impartial and without demonstrative stiffness. For creative people react more to form, and not to the maintenance,” the minister said.

“Serebrennikov’s tongue will not turn to be persecuted and offended even by the most violent“ liberal ”. He was always closed by power, he definitely has nothing to be offended,” Medinsky noted. “This is that this so -conscious creator leads the administrative part of the institution, which is on budget financing, has always caused me perplexity. Most of creative people, with their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional and their emotional An extraordinary outlook on life, it is usually more comfortable not to be business leaders, but directors, authors, creators. "

On May 23, searches were carried out by Serebrennikov and in the Gogol Center he headed. It is also known that the investigators appeared in the Gallery of Vinzavod and to the director of the youth theater Sofya Apfelbaum, which in the past headed the Department of Medical support of art and folk art to the Ministry of Culture. Searches were carried out during operational support of the FSB.

After the searches, Apfelbaum and Serebrennikov were taken to the metropolitan administration of the TFR, from wherethey released after many hours of interrogations in the evening . Serebrennikov passes a witness in the case; He took the obligation to turn to the investigator. The procedural status of Apfelbaum is unknown; After interrogation, she refused to comment.

The press service of the Investigative Committee said that the searches were held in the case of theft by the leadership of the autonomous non-profit organization "Seventh Studio" of 200 million rubles of budget funds allocated "for the development and popularization of the art of the Russian Federation." Theft, the publication said, was committed in 2011-2014.

On the night of May 24, it became known that its former general director Yuri Itin and former chief accountant Nina Maslyaeva were detained in the case. They are suspected of part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code (fraud on an especially large scale), which provides for up to 10 years of the colony. On May 25, the Presnensky court of Moscow placed Itina under house arrest . On May 27, the same court sent Maslyaev in jail until July 19. According to the investigator, she was charged with an embezzlement of about 1.2 million rubles. Maslyaeva refused to admit the guilt.

On May 24, at the ceremony of presenting state awards in the Catherine Hall of the Kremlin, actor Yevgeny Mironov handed a letter to Vladimir Putin in defense of Serebrennikov. Later, when the president talked with awarded in an informal setting, Mironov asked him a question about the director’s search: “Did you know? Knew about this?” Putin replied that he "found out yesterday." "Why? Well, why do this?! You are flying to France on Monday! Why do you need it?!" - asked Mironov. “Yes, fools,” Putin answered.