Russian President Vladimir Putin has fired two top-ranking generals from the country’s Investigative Committee.
Major-General Dmitry Shershakov, the deputy head of the Main Directorate’s Commission for combating corruption, and Vitaly Frolov, the first deputy head of the Investigative Committee Oversight commission, were both pushed from their posts on Friday.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has come under particular scrutiny following the arrest of several top officials on charges of corruption.
On July 19, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) arrested several employees of the Investigative Committee’s Moscow branch, including its deputy head Denis Nikandrov.
Nikandrov currently stands accused of receiving a $1 million bribe in connection with a case against notorious crime boss Shakro Molodoi, or Young Shakro.
The branch’s Head
of Security Mikhail
Maksimenko and his deputy Alexander
Lamonov were also arrested
on corruption charges.
The chairman of Russia’s Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin condemned the officials as “betrayers” who had “besmirched” the reputation of colleagues, the Rossiiskaya Gazeta newspaper reported at the time.
Shakro Molodoi was arrested on June 11 on charges of extorting money from the owner of the Elements restaurant in Moscow, after a violent shootout in December left two dead.
For more on the arrest of Denis Nikandrov and Young Shakro, click here.
