MOSCOW, Aug 31 (NNN-TASS) – Pavel Popov, a former Russian deputy defence minister, has been arrested on charges of large-scale fraud, and is being held in a pre-trial detention centre.
A Russian court has ordered Popov to remain in detention until Oct 29.
Investigators said that, Popov and Vyacheslav Akhmedov, director of the Patriot military-patriotic park, and Vladimir Shesterov, a deputy head of the Main Directorate for Innovative Development of the Russian Defence Ministry, misappropriated funds, between 2021 and 2024.
Popov was accused of abusing his position to divert resources from the park for personal benefit, including the construction, renovation, and furnishing of his private estate in the Krasnogorsk district of Moscow region.
The former deputy defence minister was also accused of coercing companies, contracted by the park, into constructing his private property for free, and continuing to use park resources for its maintenance and upkeep.
Popov had served as the deputy minister of emergency situations from 2008 to 2013, before joining the Ministry of Defence in 2013, as an aide to Minister Sergei Shoigu. He was appointed deputy defence minister on Nov 7, 2013, overseeing scientific research, technological development, information systems, and robotics testing. His military service was terminated by presidential decree in June this year.– NNN-TASS
