A court in Moscow arrested the property of Colonel General Khalil Arslanov, the deputy chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, who is accused of large-scale fraud, a law enforcement source said.
"Among the arrested property are land plots and real estate worth several million rubles. The arrest was imposed as an interim measure in connection with the criminal case launched under part 4 Article 159 of the Russian Criminal Code (fraud on an exceptionally large scale), of which the deputy chief of the General Staff is being accused," TASS cited the source as saying.
Arslanov filed an appeal against this decision, therefore, the ruling has not yet entered force. Arslanov continues to formally hold the post, but has taken a vacation and is de-facto not performing his official duties, the source added.
Earlier, investigation into Arslanov’s case was extended until February 6, 2020. Investigators believe that the official was involved into the so-called Voentelecom criminal case, launched in 2013 after an inquiry by the Chief Military Prosecutor’s Office.
One of defendants in the case, the former head of the Defense Ministry’s Main Communications Directorate, Maj. Gen. Alexander Ogloblin, pleaded guilty and signed a plea deal with investigators. His testimony served as a basis for charges against Arslanov.
The amount of damage in the case is estimated at 460 million rubles (about $7.4 million).
