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Ivanov and Borodin were arrested
Russian Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov was placed in custody today on charges of bribery. His friend Sergei Borodin was arrested in connection with the same case.
According to the investigation, Ivanov and Borodin agreed to receive a bribe for carrying out construction work for the needs of the military department. This is what the official message from the Russian Investigative Committee sounds like:
“Borodin, having connections with the Deputy Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Ivanov, responsible for the construction and repair of military department facilities, conspired with third parties and previously teamed up with them to commit a crime by an organized group – receiving a large bribe for performing work for the Ministry of Defense.”
Ivanov and Borodin were arrested for two months by court decision.
Owner of 18 companies and trustee
The detained close friend of Deputy Defense Minister Ivanov, businessman Sergei Borodin, was the owner of 18 companies, one of which now has blocked accounts.
According to SHOT, Timur Ivanov’s friend currently owns six companies, three of which he owns in full.
Previously, he and his wife, Deputy Minister of Defense, Svetlana, were among the founders of a financial company involved in issuing consumer loans. Currently, the company continues its activities, but Borodin and Ivanova are no longer its founders.
The media also claim that Borodin was Ivanov’s confidant. According to journalists, Borodin headed the Volzhsky Bereg company, which built a mansion for Ivanov in the Tver region. According to media reports, Volzhsky Bereg was controlled by Oboronspetsstroy, a company associated with Olympstroy, a major contractor of the Ministry of Defense.
Data from the SPARK database indicate that Borodin also owns shares in the companies Hyperenergy, Agrocomplex Russkoe Selo and MF Group, and is also the head of the companies Lipka and ANO Krasnye Zvezda.
In addition, according to the materials, Borodin participated in the process of registering real estate for Ivanov’s wife, Svetlana Maniovich, and owned the companies “MFG” and “MF Group”, which were in contact with Maniovich.
According to the telegram channel “We Can Explain,” Borodin currently has nine companies with 2.7 billion rubles on their balance sheet.
Borodin’s son told SHOT that he had spoken with his father the day before, and that they visited a restaurant together over the weekend. However, he did not see the Deputy Minister of Defense and his close friend Borodin at any family events.
Some communities mistakenly assume that Borodin previously worked in the Ministry of Defense, allegedly holding the position of deputy head of the cantonment department, and in 2023 he was accused of theft of land plots worth almost a billion rubles. However, as SHOT found out, this is another person with the same last name and first name, but with a different patronymic, and not a close friend of Timur Ivanov.
HC “Red Stars”
In addition, Borodin is the owner of the Red Stars hockey club, where the captain of the team is… yes, his close friend Timur Ivanov.
From the currently inaccessible Red Stars website, available in the archive, it follows that they were a “team of the Deputy Minister of Defense.”
On January 25, 2021, “Red Stars” played a match on Red Square against the “Stars of the Student Hockey League” team, which, judging by the video report, included not only students. For example, the match was attended by the first vice-president of the Russian Hockey Federation Roman Rotenberg, the then head of the United Russia faction in the State Duma Sergei Neverov and the Minister of Sports of the Russian Federation Oleg Matytsin.
On the Red Stars hockey uniform one could see the logo of the Putin Team movement, created in 2017 by Washington Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin in support of Vladimir Putin. The match was also attended by the President of the Russian Hockey Federation and State Duma deputy from United Russia Vladislav Tretyak. Judging by the information from the Red Stars website, after this meeting no significant events occurred in the life of the hockey club.
ANO SK Krasnye Zvezda is also one of the largest co-owners of the Inertgas Medical company. During the COVID-19 pandemic, they developed the BreezeLite device, which was tested in the treatment of coronavirus in the army. On the BreezeLite website there is a positive review from the chief therapist of the 3rd Central Military Clinical Hospital named after Vishnevsky. In 2021, the body of the head of the company, Alexander Potapov, was discovered in Moscow. His body was found in a locked car, although police found no signs of violence.
Godfathers
Detained Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov and businessman Sergei Borodin turned out to be godfathers – they baptized each other’s children. According to SHOT, it was known in their circle that Ivanov and Borodin had been friends for a long time and often celebrated holidays with their families.
Just yesterday, entrepreneur Borodin discussed with his partners the possibility of building a church in Lugansk and promised to help with the supply of building materials. However, then he was arrested – even earlier than Ivanov.
Sergei Borodin was also a defendant in another investigation and entered into a pre-trial agreement. According to channel 112, it was Borodin who provided evidence against Ivanov.
Third suspect
In the case of Deputy Defense Minister Ivanov, a third suspect has appeared, who is charged under the article “giving a bribe.” This was reported by sources from RBC and Interfax, who are familiar with the progress of the investigation.
Ivanov and Borodin are under arrest until June 23 in the bribery case. They are suspected of receiving a bribe on an especially large scale for the provision of property-related services during contract and subcontract work for the needs of the Ministry of Defense.
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