MOSCOW, August 5. /TASS/. The Moscow city court has upheld the arrest of funds ex-Minister of Open Government, Mikhail Abyzov, accused of fraud, in the amount of 437 mln rubles ($6.6 mln), Sergey Drozda, lawyer of the former minister told TASS.

On April 1, the Basmanny court arrested the money of the accused in the amount of more than 437 million rubles on current accounts, on April 2, two land plots and two residential buildings located in the Moscow region, three apartments and four rooms, and also a parking space in Moscow. On June 16, the Preobrazhensky Court of Moscow seized 1,667 ordinary shares of Industrial Technologies the cost of which is estimated by the investigation at 160,000 rubles. According to the investigation, the arrest of property is necessary to ensure the payment of compensation to victims and a fine to the state in the event of a conviction to Abyzov.

Abyzov's Case

According to the investigation, in 2011-2014, Abyzov was the beneficiary owner of a number of offshore commercial organizations, created and headed the criminal community. Law enforcement agencies believe that, together with his accomplices, he fraudulently stole 4 bln rubles from the Siberian Energy Company and Regional Electric Grids, which produce and transmit electricity in the Novosibirsk Region. According to the investigators, the stolen money in full was withdrawn abroad. Investigators believe that, by their unlawful actions, the accomplices of this crime "have put at risk the sustainable economic development and energy security of several regions of the country."

Alexander Pelipasov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of First Construction Fund, Maxim Rusakov, Deputy Director of Ru-Kom President Nikolai Stepanov, President of the Novosibirsk Regional Sambo Federation, former Director General of the Ru-com Group Nikolai Stepanov, Director for Economics and Finance Ramis Galina Freidenber, ex-general director of Regional Electric Networks Sergey Ilyichev have all been arrested as part of the Abyzov case. They are charged with committing crimes under parts 2 and 3 of Article 210 and Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Creation, management and participation in a criminal community using an official position", "Fraud, committed using an official position by an organized group").

The individuals involved in the case deny guilt and insist that civil law relations have become the subject of a criminal case.