Former Russian official facing embezzlement charges involving Cyprus

A former Russian deputy defence minister arrested in April for bribery is facing new charges of embezzling more than 3.2 billion roubles ($33.4 million), sent to the accounts of companies in Hong Kong and Cyprus, state news agency TASS reported on Monday.

The charges against Timur Ivanov involve two instances of embezzlement, TASS reported. One involved the transfer of over 3 billion roubles from the Interkommerts Bank to the accounts of companies in Hong Kong and Cyprus.

The other concerned the purchase – at the price of some 200 million roubles – of two vessels for the Kerch Strait ferry line, which connects southern Russia to Russian-annexed Crimea.

TASS said Ivanov denies the charges.

The criminal investigation into the new accusations has concluded and Ivanov faces up to ten years in prison if found guilty, the news agency said.

Ivanov, 49, faces a separate criminal trial for bribe-taking, which can carry up to 15 years in prison.

He served as a deputy defence minister since 2016, where he was in charge of property management, housing, construction and mortgages.

Ivanov’s initial arrest triggered a clampdown on high-level corruption in the defence ministry in which at least a dozen officials have been detained and charged this year.

All of the officials had served under former Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, who was replaced by economist Andrei Belousov in a cabinet reshuffle earlier this year.

Analysts have suggested the investigation into Ivanov – one of Shoigu’s 12 deputies – represented a push by a rival ‘clan’ seeking to dilute the defence minister’s power and gain wealth and influence.