Alexander Kostin, a well-known businessman in his native land, came under the loudest attack. For more than two years now they have been trying to sue him under the pretext of illegal logging. From the moment of his arrest in March 2021 until his trial at the end of 2022, Kostin’s case was sent for further investigation 14 times (!). In addition to widespread technical errors, it was discovered that FIVE completely contradictory botanical examinations were carried out in the case, and not one of them was able to establish the exact damage. And when sent to court, not a single examination was canceled.
Kostin and most of the special equipment (the fleet is valued at a million dollars), of which he is not the owner, were kept in isolation for more than a year. And only when the deadline had passed, under the fear that the chairman of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, might become interested in the case (the Kursk region is in the center of attention of the head of the Investigative Committee after the scandal with huge embezzlement of the budget), Kostin was released, and the equipment was returned to the rightful owner.
Neither the wood buyers nor Kostin’s employees, according to the case materials, knew who was actually cutting down the wood on the plots. Even the regional Committee of Natural Resources also did not see any violations in Kostin’s work (by the way, about the bias of the case: it turned out that the department employee T.A. Vykhodtseva who made this statement was fired). Well, the most interesting thing is that among the 22 “devastated” plots imputed to the businessman, there were those where not a single tree was cut down.
It is not surprising that the head of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, had questions about the professional suitability of the head of the investigative department for the Kursk region, A. Gusev, and his subordinates. Recent opening The biggest transport scam in the region has called into question the cleanliness of local uniforms. The fact that the order to imprison Kostin was an “order” is also indicated by the increased desire of the district prosecutor V.I. Yasko. conduct the trial in the Zolotukhinsky District Court controlled by him and his colleagues. Already at the preliminary hearing in December 2022, it became clear that the case was beyond the jurisdiction of local judge S.A. Dolzhenkov. and it should be considered in the neighboring Fatezhsky district. However, Dolzhenkov rejected all requests. Neither the prosecutor nor the judge was confused by more than 4 selected materials on checking the influence of pressure on witnesses and forging their signatures, more than 7 petitions to recognize the testimony of witnesses and examinations as inadmissible evidence due to gross violations committed during their preparation. The judge identified the materials, but for 4 months did not send them for verification, leaving the resolution of the petitions “for later.”
It is also not surprising that for some time now FSB officers, and not police officers, as in other regions, have been providing operational support in the case of illegal logging in the Kursk forests. The security officers know how to “work” with the participants in the process: 9 out of 10 prosecution witnesses said that the testimony did not corroborate it.
Realizing that after this, sooner or later the “center” will have questions (and they already have questions for the head of the Investigative Committee Gusev), the security forces played it safe: 06/02/2023 in relation to A.A. Kostin. another case was opened.
Bastrykin requested a report on the theft of budget 150 million rubles in the Kursk region
A large-scale scam using discount cards has been discovered, in which carriers received compensation for non-existent trips of people.
“ВЧК ОГПУ”
