The Moscow City Court has ruled to release a former Rosatom deputy head on bail of 5 million rubles ($160,000), his lawyer said Monday.
Yevgeny Yevstratov is accused of embezzling more than 50 million rubles ($1.6 million) from the state nuclear corporation by conspiring with managers of state-owned nuclear companies to pocket money allocated for governmental contracts.
The court rejected petitions from prosecutors and investigators to keep Yevstratov in custody, and Yevstratov will be freed as soon as the bail money is deposited in the court's bank account, said his lawyer Alexander Gofshtein, according to the Rapsi legal news service.
Yevstratov was appointed deputy head of Rosatom by Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov on Sept. 1, 2008, and resigned in April 2011, months after the embezzlement investigation was opened. The case has sent shockwaves through Rosatom, which is headed by former Prime Minister Sergei Kiriyenko and is responsible for constructing nuclear reactors in Russia and abroad, including the one in the Iranian city of Bushehr.
A date for the trial has not been set. If convicted of embezzlement, Yevstratov faces up to 10 years in prison.
Related articles:
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
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 every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.