Former deputy chief of Russian army's general staff jailed for 17 years in fraud case
A closed-door military court found Khalil Arslanov, a colonel general, and others guilty of stealing some 1.6 billion roubles from state contracts with Voentelecom, a company that provides telecommunications services and equipment to the Russian military.
Arslanov was also found guilty of extorting a 12 million rouble bribe from the head of a military communications company.
Two other men, Colonel Pavel Kutakhov, and Igor Yakovlev, whom TASS described as a military pensioner, were found guilty alongside Arslanov and received seven and six years in prison, respectively.
A former head of the Russian military's communications unit, Arslanov served as deputy chief of the army's General Staff from 2013 until he was removed from office in 2020. He was named a colonel general in 2017.
Russia has stepped up prosecutions of top defence officials as a series of corruption scandals have engulfed the highest echelons of the Russian military establishment in the past year.
This month, former deputy defence minister Timur Ivanov was sentenced to 13 years on corruption charges, the harshest sentence yet in the string of graft cases.
($1 = 78.6955 roubles)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Alleged spy ‘planned to give Russia location of Grant Shapps's private jet'
A man accused of attempting to spy for Russia offered to pass on personal information about Sir Grant Shapps, a court has heard. Howard Phillips, from Harlow in Essex, told two undercover agents he could provide the former defence secretary's phone number and details of his private aircraft in return for money. The 65-year-old, who was unemployed at the time, also applied for a job at UK Border Force, hoping the security clearance would give him access to more information, a court was told. It is alleged he believed he was sharing information with two Russian Intelligence Service (RIS) agents called Dima and Sasha, but in fact they were undercover British police officers. In one 'drop', Mr Phillips allegedly left a USB stick on the seat post of a bicycle parked near Euston station on which was a document setting out what services he was willing to provide. He is accused of telling the agents: 'If a foreign power had someone on the outside, totally hidden, completely secret, who moves easily in society, anywhere on any level and can completely blend in as an upstanding citizen, locally or tourist in any worldwide location, that would prove invaluable to a foreign entity in ensuring discretion of movement. 'Then add to that a valid government security vetting pass. Such a person can move under the radar, allaying all suspicion, they can move undetected and travel anywhere at any time, no questions asked, they simply avoid suspicion.' Winchester Crown Court heard how on May 16 last year, Mr Phillips allegedly created a document containing Sir Grant's personal details. He had arranged to meet with 'Sasha' in London that day to take instructions and collect cash but was arrested by plain-clothes officers in a coffee shop near King's Cross station. On the first day of his trial, jurors were told how Mr Phillips had been motivated mainly by financial gain. Jocelyn Ledward KC, prosecuting, said: 'That appears to have been a very significant factor in his eagerness and desire to provide assistance to the RIS. 'The evidence shows he was very keen to offer assistance, not necessarily for any ideological reason, or because he sympathised with the Russian state but particularly to be financially rewarded for so doing... easy work for easy money.' Ms Ledward went on: 'Had the defendant succeeded in any or all of what he had intended to do, any or all of these acts could have had very serious consequences indeed.' The court heard how Mr Phillips, a former insolvency worker, had come up with the codeword 'mother' for Moscow, and told the agents he thought it was 'absolute rubbish' that Russia had been discredited in recent years. Jurors were told he had applied for a job as a Border Force officer, which would have involved searching baggage and processing passengers at an airport or seaport. Ms Ledward said: '[Mr Phillips] no doubt believed, or certainly came to realise, that working at a government agency such as the Border Force and the security clearance that came with it, would give him access to information that he could later provide to a foreign intelligence service.' In April last year Mr Phillips and the two officers arranged to meet in person at the London Bridge Hotel. He told them that he had a background working in insolvency but had worked a nine-to-five job for most of his life and so wanted to do something different. He allegedly told the agents: 'I feel that we can work well together, if you're interested in me, I'm interested in you, and vice versa.' He said he hoped to become financially independent and not go back to his job, adding: 'If I'm financially independent in the UK then I don't have to be part of it in any way.' On May 9, he met the undercover officers at a Costa Coffee in a retail park in West Thurrock, Essex. During this meeting, which had been covertly recorded by the officers, Mr Phillips allegedly told the agents that he held personal details about Sir Grant, including his home address, his home telephone number and 'details of his private plane'. 'The defendant explained that he had met Grant Shapps and had visited his house,' the prosecutor said. Mr Phillips was given a sheet of paper with instructions for a task on it, which included the words: 'Moscow very pleased with ongoing progress.' Ms Ledward told jurors that assisting foreign intelligence services of hostile states could 'undermine the UK's security'. Referring to the leaking of information about the then defence secretary, she said: 'The defendant knew exactly what those personal details of Grant Shapps MP would enable the Russians to do.' Sir Grant served as secretary of state for defence during the Ukraine and Russia war and would have held negotiations with Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's president. Mr Phillips denies the charge of engaging in conduct to assist a foreign intelligence service, in breach of the National Security Act, and the trial continues. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Bloomberg
an hour ago
- Bloomberg
Senate Republicans Eye Russia Sanctions as Trump Amps Up Putin Rhetoric
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said Wednesday he expects a vote as soon as this month to place severe new sanctions on Russia, the latest sign of a growing fracture between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, a man the US president once said he admired. The sanctions bill, which at least 85 senators have endorsed, has been stalled for months as Republicans waited for a reluctant Trump to green light a vote. But Trump has become increasingly frustrated with Putin over the war in Ukraine and confirmed this week he's sending more defensive weapons to President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's government, sweeping aside an earlier pause by the Pentagon.
CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
Russia sanctions bill gains momentum as GOP senators attempt to strike careful balance with Trump
A bipartisan Russia sanctions bill is gaining momentum in the Senate and could soon come to a vote as Republican lawmakers attempt to strike a careful balance with President Donald Trump. Key supporters of the bill have expressed optimism that the package has the backing of the president, and Majority Leader John Thune said Wednesday that the Senate could take up the legislation before the August recess. A bill with bipartisan support and more than 80 cosponsors could move fast in the chamber, but a challenge for GOP leaders has been to not get ahead of the White House. GOP senators have taken steps not to appear to be jamming the president on the issue, especially as Trump's views over Russia and Ukraine have at times appeared to change and evolve. Thune said senators have been in close contact with the White House and their House colleagues as GOP leadership aims to vote on the bipartisan bill this month. Asked if he's been talking to Trump about when the bill will come to the Senate floor, Thune answered, 'We are communicating with the White House. Our team's been in touch with theirs on a regular basis.' 'We've got individual senators, members who are talking to the White House and to our colleagues in the House, and we're sort of gaming out how that might ultimately be accomplished,' he continued. Thune has indicated that he would not advance the legislation without Trump's blessing. The president told reporters on Tuesday that he was 'looking at' the bill, and remarked that the Senate will potentially pass it 'totally at [his] option.' Trump on Tuesday decried what he called 'bullsh*t' being peddled by his Russian counterpart, venting anger toward President Vladimir Putin as his efforts to broker peace in Ukraine fall short. The remark was the clearest indication yet of Trump's frustrations at Moscow, which has shown no willingness to end its war in Ukraine as it enters a fourth summer. On Wednesday, Thune called the sanctions bill, which would levy heavy tariffs on imports from countries that purchase Russian uranium, gas and oil, an 'important message to send, especially now.' Republicans have also emphasized that the legislation would give the president leverage. Sen. Lindsey Graham, the bill's sponsor in the Senate, has touted the its inclusion of a measure giving Trump the ability to waive sanctions at a later date. Graham said Wednesday, 'My goal is to get to the president's desk before the August break … there's a waiver in the bill to give the president leverage. I talked to the president last week about it. He thinks the bill will be helpful. So we'll get it to him.' The South Carolina Republican told reporters on Tuesday Trump 'told me it's time to move. So we're going to move' on the package. 'You can tell yesterday the president's willing to change course, and this bill will give him significant leverage over China and India, who prop up Putin's war machine. And only way we're ever going to end this war is to have Putin's customers put pressure on Putin, and my goal is to give President Trump a tool he doesn't have today from the Congress with a presidential waiver,' Graham said on Wednesday. Asked if he is supportive of the sanctions bill, GOP Sen. Josh Hawley said on Wednesday, 'I'm going to talk to the president about that. I know that he, Lindsey, has said that the president is supportive it, wants to move on that. I'm scheduled to talk to the president about that shortly.' Sen. Richard Blumenthal, the lead Democratic co-sponsor of the bill, argued that Trump's waiver authority is 'very limited and constrained' in the package. 'Very importantly, in this bill, there's congressional oversight. We can override the president if we disagree with him, and so it's not unbridled or unconstrained authority simply to waive the sanctions,' said Blumenthal. 'Nobody here should presume that there will be a waiver of these sanctions. They are scorching. They are bone crushing. Vladimir Putin should get the word if he wants to come to the table, now is the time. Otherwise, his economy is going to be hit hard, because India and China will have every incentive to shop elsewhere for their oil and gas,' he added.
