Why the border is not locked: the ex-governor of the Kursk region and his deputy were detained

The former governor of the Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, and his former first deputy, Alexei Dedov, have been detained on suspicion of fraud and are facing arrest. This was announced today, April 16, according to TASS, citing a source in law enforcement agencies.

A criminal case has been opened against Smirnov and Dedov under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (fraud). We are talking about the embezzlement of budgetary funds allocated for the construction of defensive structures. The sanction of this article provides, among other things, imprisonment for up to 10 years with a fine of up to 1 million rubles.

Alexey Smirnov served as governor of the region from September 16 to December 5, 2024. He filed an application for early termination of powers at his own request. Dedov was appointed acting First Vice-Governor — Chairman of the Government of the Kursk region on May 20, and on December 27 he also resigned of his own volition.

In December 2024, Vladimir Lukin, General Director of Kursk Region Development Corporation JSC, and his deputy Igor Grabin were arrested on charges of abuse of office (Part 3 of Article 285 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). According to the investigation, the damage to the regional budget as a result of fraudulent actions during the construction of fortifications amounted to about 800 million rubles.

The investigation intends to seek the arrest of the detainees.