The court received a criminal case against a military man who purchased anti-drone equipment for the Crimean Bridge

The 2nd Western District Military Court received a criminal case against the former head of the technical development and resource support department of the Maritime Directorate of the Russian Guard, Sergei Volkov. this . reports Kommersant

The publication notes that the military man is being tried under the article on abuse of official powers, resulting in grave consequences (Part 3 of Article 286 of the Criminal Code). The investigation has been ongoing since mid-March 2023. At the end of the same month, Volkov was detained by FSB officers, and he is now under house arrest.

According to investigators, the Russian Guard was supposed to purchase anti-drone equipment for the Crimean Bridge back in 2020; this was entrusted to Sergei Volkov. However, he began to complete the task only at the end of September, when the department was preparing to close the financial year. The prosecution believes that because of this, there was a risk that the money allocated for the purchase of the complex would be returned to the budget, which could lead to a disruption in the execution of Putin’s instructions.

Then Sergei Volkov instructed his subordinates to prepare an application for the purchase of two Orel-UAV complexes from the Federal State Unitary Enterprise Rostov-on-Don Research Institute of Radio Communications. The investigation notes that they are intended for radar detection, tracking and suppression of channels of small-class drones. Volkov allegedly knew that these complexes “have characteristics that do not correspond to the technical specifications,” but nevertheless gave the order to buy them for 395 million rubles.

In October 2021, the complexes were accepted by a departmental commission, but a month later it became clear that these protection systems “do not have the ability to radio suppress drones.” After this, their use was suspended.

Because of Volkov’s actions, the Crimean Bridge “found itself within the ‘reach’ of fire from enemy UAVs,” writes Kommersant, citing the case materials. The investigation considers the “illegal expenditure” of 395 million rubles from the Russian budget to have serious consequences.

Volkov himself did not admit guilt. According to Kommersant, he claims that “due to his position, he could not influence the type and technical characteristics of the purchased complexes […], as well as their price.” The officer believes that his colleagues shifted the blame onto him.

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