The Basmanny Court of Moscow issued a verdict in the criminal case of the former inspector of the central department of Rostekhnadzor Sergey Kulikov. According to the investigation, the official demanded 1.3 million rubles. from the management of the FKP “National Testing Association “State Ammunition Testing Grounds of Russia” (GBIP), threatening not to sign the certificate of acceptance into operation of the new test complex GBIP in case of non-payment of money. The court found Mr. Kulikov guilty and sentenced him to six years in a strict regime colony. At the same time, they did not impose a fine of five times the amount of the bribe on the convict, as the prosecutor’s office demanded in the debate.
The materials of the criminal case against the former inspector of the interregional department of state construction supervision of the central department of Rostekhnadzor Sergey Kulikov, who was investigating the department of the ICR for the Central Administrative District of Moscow, have been heard by the Basmanny Court of the capital since May last year. In a recent debate, a representative of the state prosecution stated that he considered the defendant’s guilt in receiving a particularly large bribe using his official position (part 6 of article 290 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) fully proven. At the same time, the prosecutor, taking into account the gravity of the crime committed by Mr. Kulikov, asked the court to sentence the inspector to nine years in a strict regime colony and impose a fine on him five times the amount of the bribe received. In addition, according to the public prosecutor, the convict after his release should be banned from holding positions in state bodies for ten years.
As Kommersant previously reported, Sergey Kulikov was detained on December 9, 2021 by operatives of the economic security service (SEB) of the FSB of the Russian Federation in his office, in the building of his department in 1st Basmanny Lane. This happened after the inspector received 1.3 million rubles. in cash from one of the leaders of the Federal State Enterprise “National Testing Association “State Ammunition Test Sites of Russia””. The next day, employees of the Investigative Committee of Russia charged Sergei Kulikov with taking a bribe using his official position, and the Khamovnichesky District Court of Moscow arrested him. The period of validity of this preventive measure was then repeatedly extended.
As follows from the materials of the criminal case, the inspector demanded money from the leadership of the GBIP about a week before his arrest, during an unscheduled on-site inspection.
Mr. Kulikov headed the selection committee for the commissioning of the new GBIP multifunctional test complex for testing advanced ammunition, weapons and military equipment, which was supposed to start work in 2021.
It should be noted that the FKP GBIP, created on the basis of the Geodesy Research Institute near Moscow, unites four leading Russian ranges for testing promising types of weapons and ammunition, including aviation and ground artillery of all calibers, high-precision bombs and shells, close combat weapons, ammunition for multiple rocket launchers and various types of engines.
Having discovered during the inspection a deviation from the construction regulations in two buildings of the complex and on the helipad, the inspector, according to the investigation, threatening not to sign the certificate of acceptance of the complex for operation, demanded to pay him 1.3 million rubles.
Moreover, the official, according to the case, made it clear that he was ready to accept money both in cash and by transfer, but in the second case he demanded to increase the amount by 25%, calling it compensation for his expenses for cashing out funds. Mr. Kulikov demanded that the money be transferred to him before December 10, 2021, the expiration date for the commission to make a decision on signing the acceptance certificate. Otherwise, he promised to carry out his threat. However, the representative of the GBIP, having heard the proposal of Mr. Kulikov, filed a statement with the SES of the FSB. After that, negotiations and meetings between the parties took place under the control of the security officers and were recorded.
Sergei Kulikov pleaded not guilty. His defense in court first demanded the return of the materials of the criminal case to the prosecutor’s office for a new investigation, and in the debate – the acquittal of the former inspector. However, the court agreed with the state prosecution, found the defendant guilty, but imposed a milder sentence on him than the prosecutor had asked for – six years in a strict regime colony without a fine, while forbidding him to hold public office for ten years. The defense of the convict, according to Kommersant, plans to appeal the decision of the district court.