Support The Moscow Times!

Bosses Can no Longer Protect Corrupt Employees at State Companies

The Interior Ministry is celebrating impending changes to the Criminal Procedural Code that would make it easier to prosecute managers at state-owned companies.

The bill, put forward by President Vladimir Putin, proposes allowing law enforcement officers to file abuse of office and bribery charges against state company managers without the consent of their bosses, Vedomosti reported.

The State Duma adopted amendments to the code in first reading Tuesday.

There is a trend in state companies of managers selling assets and concluding clearly unfavorable agreements with contractors, Yury Gorbunov, state secretary of the Federal Security Bureau said. While these actions can lead to significant losses for the firms, the Criminal Procedural Code currently requires law enforcement agents to wait until they receive a request from the suspect's boss to press any charges.

Losses incurred at state-owned companies due to corrupt managers should be treated as losses to the state, Gorbunov said, and criminal cases against such employees ought to be opened.

The legal procedures for private companies would remain the same, where a manager's request is required to start criminal cases against employees suspected of misdemeanor.

… we have a small favor to ask.

As you may have heard, The Moscow Times, an independent news source for over 30 years, has been unjustly branded as a "foreign agent" by the Russian government. This blatant attempt to silence our voice is a direct assault on the integrity of journalism and the values we hold dear.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. Our commitment to providing accurate and unbiased reporting on Russia remains unshaken. But we need your help to continue our critical mission.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just 2. It's quick to set up, and you can be confident that you're making a significant impact every month by supporting open, independent journalism. Thank you.

Continue

Read more