On the little things

Once this investigation was called the success of military counterintelligence. As a result, all the bribe takers escaped with conditional sentences. These are likes in social networks

As follows from the message of the city press service of the courts, this is the fifth “fragment” of a large-scale investigation of total bribes in the 103rd section of the Gosarhstroynadzor. Like previous decisions in this case, the punishment turned out to be conditional. In 2020, the detention of a dozen responsible employees of the supervisory authority - with "iron" evidence of total bribery - was filed as a great success of military counterintelligence. Three years later, the case actually fell apart, turning into a “stamping” of conditional terms and a temporary ban on the civil service.

The deputy head of the 103rd department of the State Architectural Construction Supervision (GASN) in the Western Military District Nikolai Redvozin was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison, with a test period of five years. In addition, the property of a former official was confiscated to ensure a civil lawsuit: the Mercedes-Benz GLC 250 4 MATIC car and a land plot with a garden house in the Leningrad region.

This is the fifth sentence in this case, and they all surprise with their softness. Although immediately after the detention of the suspects, this case was filed as a suppression of the work of the criminal community, which put the receipt of bribes to the stream. Behind his activities, employees of the counterintelligence department of the FSB of the Russian Federation followed the whole year.

On one July day 2019, four young people appeared in the office of the 103rd department of the GASN, located in the Lane of the entrance. They were dressed in the uniform jackets of Rostelecom and said they had come to check telephone and Internet cables. Employees of the department overturning the quality of objects under construction for the Ministry of Defense, interested in reliable communication, provided telephone operators with full access to their office. Not forgetting to remove official documents and in general “extra” things to the safe.

Sephors were not interested in “telephoners”, they really took up numerous wires. Four hours later, the guests left the supervisor, leaving behind numerous audio and video training. They returned a year later, on June 30, 2020.

But this time, the guests were dressed not in the Rostelecom’s overalls, but in the blue tinels of employees of the Investigative Committee and uniform uniforms, on which the loops (crossed swords and shields, the emblem of the FSB of the Russian Federation) and the Chevrons of the Department of Military Counterintelligence of the FSB were cast with gold.

It turned out that the entire previous year “specialists” (as counterintelligence officers have been called since Soviet times) listened to telephone conversations of the department’s employees and recorded conversations that were held in the offices. These records formed the basis of a criminal case instituted on the grounds of crimes provided for in Articles 210 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Creation of a criminal community or participation in it”, up to 20 years in prison) and 290 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“receiving a bribe”, up to 15 years in prison, with a fine of a 70-fold amount from the amount of the bribe).

The next day, July 1, 2020, the United press service of the courts of St. Petersburg reported that the St. Petersburg Garrison Court arrested the head of the 103rd department of the State House of Hall Denis Mongiyevsky and his subordinate Igor Casminin. Another 10 employees of the department were limited in the movement of non -departure and home arrests. After some time, the press service of the Western Military District sent a letter to the media in which she stated the plot of a criminal case, initiated according to the results of the "wiretapp".

It turned out that the employees of the 103rd department of the GASN on an ongoing basis received bribes from contracting organizations building or repairing buildings of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.

In the case, they appeared:

• Pension for pupils of the Moscow Region on Krestovsky Island in St. Petersburg, hostel of the Khrulev Academy of Logistics in Petrodvorets,

• Military town in Luga (Leningrad region),

• barracks and hostel in Pskov,

• 123rd aviation repair plant in Novgorod,

• Repair of military facilities in Kamenka and Lebyazhye (Leningrad region) and a number of other objects.

COMMENT

Director of a construction company from the Leningrad Region Yuri Bulygin:

- The state contract is always reliable and profitable. After all, the state will not “jump off” at the last stage of construction, taking the money of equity holders abroad. And he will not go bankrupt after the contractor invested his own funds. There is a constant struggle for such contracts, in which not those who work better win, but those who are closer to the responsible for construction often win.

And when the construction or repair is completed, there are always problems with the acceptance/delivery of the facility. An unfriendly official will easily find what to find fault with, and will not sign the acceptance certificate, without which the ZOS is not received (the conclusion on the conformity of the constructed project documentation and technical regulations). After that, the final calculation of the contract is carried out. Therefore, with overseing organizations, in particular with Stroynadzor, it is necessary to actively be friends. And often this friendship is poured not only into joint gatherings in restaurants, but also to the payment of large "premium".

In this case, the sums of bribes do not amaze the imagination. We can say that they are minimal for contractors with billions. For example, in the verdict of Nikolai Razzin, announced on October 11 this year in the Vyborg District Court of St. Petersburg, sums from 100 thousand to 2.63 million rubles appear. At the same time, the court notes that, receiving money, Redinzin left himself only part of the amount, transferring the rest of the superior authorities. So, in the resulting bribe of 2 million 633 thousand 270 rubles per share, 640 thousand. And from a bribe of 100 thousand, the official took only 25 thousand.

As follows from the message of the press service of the vessels of St. Petersburg, Redvzin was found guilty of 28 episodes of receiving a bribe (the total amount is 22 million 55 thousand 288 rubles, of which 4 million 426 thousand rubles were for the defense of the defendant) and one attempt to fraud (400 thousand rubles).

Article 210 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Creation or participation in the criminal community”) quietly evaporated in the process of investigation. And for numerous bribes, as already noted, the official received a suspended sentence.

Such a mild punishment is understandable: Redinzin fully pleaded guilty and concluded an agreement with the investigation, and the case itself was listened in a special order.

COMMENT

Anonymous employee of the counterintelligence department of the FSB of the Russian Federation, who participated in the operational support of the case:

- When we only proceeded to the “development” of this department, we faced the task of opening the entire chain from the lower to the upper level. But the head of the department of Mongzhyevsky was very careful, did not tell the authorities about anything criminal according to official phones and did not give money in his office. After the arrest, he did not admit anything and “closed” with the 51st articles of the Constitution, refusing to testify. His subordinates, who instantly began to conclude transactions with the investigation, did not know (in any case, they say so) with whom their boss shared. And we were absolutely sure of what was shared. The employees of the department acted too arrogantly and everyday. As if someone “covered” them-at least at the level of the General Staff.

According to the source in the FSB, the fact that the final recipients of money are not named does not mean that they are unknown. When it comes to bosses with general shoulder straps, the Ministry of Defense tries not to take out the CROs from the hut.

The “littered” on bribes or kickbacks of officers quietly transferred to nothing important positions, after which they just as quietly dismiss.

But in this case, after the searches in the 103rd department and the arrest of Mongzhyevsky, no special movements were recorded in the Moscow Region Building Department.

COMMENT

Lawyer Sergei Afanasyev:

- Personally, in this story, I was surprised that out of five sentences issued, there is no punishment in the form of “multiplicity” fines. Actually, this part of the 290th article was practically not used before, but here it is just striking in the eye. It seems that the judges forgot about multiple fines.

Recall that the “multiplicity of fines” when sentencing for receiving a bribe was introduced in 2011 at the initiative of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. At the discussion stage, these amendments were criticized. Some experts stated that the Kremlin is returning to Soviet methods, when the confiscation of property was a separate type of punishment that violates human rights. In theory, the amendments should have strengthened precisely the property responsibility for receiving a bribe. For example, if the multiplicity of fines were applied to the ravine, then it could remain 300 million rubles proper to the state.

COMMENT

Lawyer Sergei Afanasyev:

- When these amendments were only accepted, they greatly scared officials. One of my clients directly said that the prison term is nonsense, he served and left, and you can start everything from scratch. But if an unbearable debt hangs on you, then you will never get out of this pit. However, time again everything was in its place. First, the judges still assigned multiple fines, but at a minimum rate. And then generally stopped using these amendments. So they safely forgot about them, and the corrupt officials and bribe takers calmed down.

Immediately after the entry into force of the law on amendments to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation on the multiplicity of fines among lawyers, disputes arose sometimes developing into anecdotal ones. For example, this situation was seriously studied: a woman’s lawyer comes to the male investigator and says that he will provide him with intimate services if he closes the criminal case against her client. Is it possible to consider in this case the fact of sexual contact with a bribe? And if possible, then as a bribe taker (in this case to a lawyer) to give a 70-fold fine? To sleep 70 times with those to whom the judge will indicate? And what to do with a briberator (in this case, an investigator) when assigning a multiple of a fine? Forbid him to sleep 70 times with his wife or count the money equivalent of sexual services at the average tariff of “Night butterflies”?

COMMENT

Lawyer Sergei Afanasyev:

- All this, of course, is ridiculous, but often this is how uncomfortable laws happen. No one will cancel the law or decree of the president, it threatens with serious image losses. But to make fun of a good idea, turning it into a farce and on this basis to forget about amendments, is quite in the spirit of modern Russian society. Be that as it may, but judicial practice clearly shows that Medvedev’s amendments turned out to be a dummy that did not affect the level of corruption in the country. But in case of their application, the situation could really change for the better. The fine is not confiscation, the absence of property will not cancel it, and the debtor will be a complete bankrupt until this fine extinguishes.

Saint Petersburg