Former Russian Deputy Defense Minister Pavel Popov has been transferred from pre-trial detention to a civilian hospital for possible surgery, state news agencies reported Thursday.
Popov, 68, was arrested last summer on fraud charges as part of a wider anti-corruption crackdown in the Defense Ministry. He is accused of forcing contractors working on a military theme park outside Moscow to carry out unpaid construction at his private property.
Popov denies the charges, which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
His lawyer, Denis Sagach, told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency that the formal defense official was urgently moved from the Lefortovo detention center to a hospital on Sunday.
“Popov has a number of chronic diseases, and one of them has now escalated,” Sagach said, adding that doctors were considering surgery but had postponed a decision until after Russia’s extended Victory Day holidays.
He reportedly suffers from obesity, high blood pressure, heart issues and elevated blood sugar.
Popov served as deputy defense minister from November 2013 to June 2024.
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