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Disgraced Kremlin Loyalist Gets Cushy State Job

Vladimir Pekhtin, the Kremlin loyalist who relinquished his State Duma seat amid a Miami property row in February, has been elected as a board member of RusHydro, the state hydropower company.

With Pekhtin's appointment, the number of board members has increased from 13 to 14, the company said in a statement.

RusHydro CEO Yevgeny Dod will assign Pekhtin with specific responsibilities soon, Interfax reported late Tuesday, citing the company's press office.

Earlier Pekhtin told journalists that he might be appointed as RusHydro's deputy CEO, adding that he wanted to be involved in the construction of hydroelectric power stations, including those in the Far East, Interfax said.

Pekhtin, who belonged to United Russia, left the Duma after anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny published documents indicating that Pekhtin co-owned undeclared property worth more than $2 million in Miami and Ormond Beach, Florida.

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