Recently, the politician Sergei Sopchuk has not been doing well in Russia.
According to the correspondent MorningNews, the press became aware that the defense of the former deputy of the State Duma of Russia, Sergei Sopchuk, intends to appeal the decision of the Zamoskvoretsky District Court of the capital. We are talking about the situation with LLC “Recreation Complex” Mayak “”.
Recall that recently his name most often flashes in the media in connection with the criminal case, of which he is a defendant. The details of the case became widely known last year.
In the investigative department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Primorsky Territory then reportedthat Sergei Sopchuk was charged with committing crimes under Art. 289 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (illegal participation in business activities) and paragraph “b” part 4 of Art. 174.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (legalization (laundering) of money or other property acquired by other persons by criminal means).
According to the investigation committee, since 2011, Sopchuk, simultaneously with the exercise of legislative and executive powers in the Primorsky Territory, has been engaged in entrepreneurial activities, including through controlled commercial companies.
“So, in order to make a profit, starting from 2011, he participated in the financial activities of one of the commercial organizations. For these purposes, Sopchuk appointed a trustee as the head of the organization and until 2020 was the actual co-owner of the enterprise. At the same time, he provided the enterprise both personally and through individuals and legal entities controlled by him with loans totaling more than 1 billion rubles, ”the investigative committee said in a statement.
The investigation believes that Sopchuk illegally used his deputy status to patronize business activities and legalized the money acquired as a result of this crime.
Later, the politician was put on the international wanted list. According to some media reports, now the ex-deputy may be in the UAE.
For the period of investigation, Sopchuk’s membership in the United Russia party was suspended.
So what about the recreation center?
The court satisfied the claim of the First Deputy Prosecutor General and ruled to transfer the Mayak recreation complex to the ownership of Russia, as well as to recover from the defendants Sergey Sopchuk and his sister Lyudmila Stukova profit in the amount of 135 million rubles received from the operation of the facility for a certain period. This is reported “Kommersant” and clarifies that real estate and vehicles owned by the ex-deputy were also seized for collection.
According to the publication, the politician’s representatives said they intend to appeal this decision. The politician himself believes that he did not commit any violations.
And that’s not the whole story. Earlier, the court turned Terney Zoloto LLC into state revenue, which has licenses to develop deposits in the Far East.
Kommersant explains that Stukova was the owner of the securities company, while Sopchuk did not declare his participation in the business. The aforementioned “Mayak” was also issued on Stukov.
Sergey Sopchuk could also act as a participant in the project “theoretically”. There was nothing illegal in this, since that year he returned from civil service to business, and then until 2016 he was a deputy of the regional Duma, who was also not prohibited from doing business. The main facilities at the base were just built in these years.
What about the Lighthouse?
Everything is sad there … The Instagram page says the following: “From December 6, 2021, the Mayak recreation complex suspends its activities indefinitely.” The reason is that he became a participant in the trial.
Journalists tried to figure out the story with Sopchuk The Moscow Post.
“Sergey Sopchuk was under the gun of law enforcement because of a long-standing conflict with the governor of Primorye Oleg Kozhemyako?” the author of the publication then asked.
The text referred to the case when the Prosecutor General’s Office secured the confiscation of Sergei Sopchuk’s assets in the amount of more than 30 billion rubles.
“We are talking about the Terney Zoloto company, at that time Sopchuk’s business partner was the ex-State Duma deputy Vasily Usoltsev – it was the latter who testified against a politician with an entrepreneurial streak. Apparently, Usoltsev “laid” a partner in the interests of the governor of Primorye Oleg Kozhemyako, who has a long-standing friendship with gold miner Pavel Maslovsky, ”the author suggested then.
It is difficult to say what caused this whole situation in which Sopchuk found himself. However, it is clear that things are not going well for him now, given the case and the courts.