The case against Nikita Karabaev, Danila Elinson and Ruslan Nurgaliyev ended with a humane decision of the court. Young people from Almetyevsk were accused of theft on an especially large scale: in the fall of 2021, they took out a safe with money from the building of the “economic” department of the investigatory committee. But their lawyers were able to convince the court that they did not know about the money and they were tritely framed. About what the court took into account when passing the verdict, for what reason it partially acquitted one of the defendants in the case, and when all three will be able to go free – in the material “BUSINESS Online”.
How it came to the verdict
Today, the fate of three young people from Almetyevsk, accused of daring theft of a safe with 14.6 million rubles from the building of the 4th “economic” department of the Investigative Committee of the Investigative Committee for the Republic of Tatarstan, was decided in the Vakhitovsky District Court – Nikita Karabaev, Danila Elinson and Ruslan Nurgaliyev.
The actions of all three, taking into account the stolen millions, were qualified by the court under paragraph b of part 4 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Theft on an especially large scale”), and Nurgaliyev was also accused of misappropriation of a state registration mark (part 1 of article 325 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
Chronology: how a safe was stolen from the TFR building
The robbery in the 4th Department for the Investigation of Particularly Important Cases of the Investigative Committee of the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Tatarstan took place on the night of October 3-4. A foreign car drove up to the building at 45 Karl Marx Street, in which there were five people: Jivan Mkhitaryan, Ruslan Nurgaliyev, Nikita Karabaev, Danil Elinson and now ex-investigator of the ICR Marat Shakirov, who, according to investigators, organized the theft.
Judging by the text of the indictment, Shakirov promised young people 50,000 rubles each for the “case,” and 200,000 rubles to the owner of the car that would drive up to the building. Everyone agreed. At night, they entered the building (the alarm did not work), found the safe and took it out through the window on the first floor. After that, the Almetievites left for themselves, and Shakirov remained in Kazan.
The loss of the safe was discovered only on Monday morning, October 4th. It turned out that, in addition to the investigator’s drafts, it also contained 14 million rubles, which were confiscated as part of a criminal case from businessmen Leonid Baryshev and Vadim Makheev.
The next day, Elinson, Nurgaliev and Karabaev were detained in Almetyevsk, who pointed to Shakirov. The ex-investigator was detained that evening on the M7 highway when he tried to leave Kazan. Law enforcement officers failed to catch Mkhitaryan. According to the information voiced in court, he could go abroad. Now he is on the international wanted list.
On October 7, 2021, they were placed under arrest. Consideration of the case on the merits began in April 2022. During this time, the court managed to examine the collected evidence, interrogate witnesses, including even high-ranking employees of the investigative department – the head of the 4th Investigative Committee of the ICR in the Republic of Tatarstan Stanislav Stolyarov and his deputy, who now works as an ordinary investigator , Iskander Subaev. The interrogation of the defendants themselves took place behind closed doors. This was influenced by the fact that the fifth participant in the robbery, Mkhitaryan, has not yet been found, and the publicized testimony, the prosecutor’s office is sure, would help him hide and build his defense.
The court approached the debate in January 2023. Despite the fact that the punishment under the article “Theft on an especially large scale” provides for up to 10 years in prison, the prosecutor’s office asked to appoint Elinson 5 years in prison, Karabaev – 4 years, and Nurgaliyev – 4 years 6 months in a penal colony and a fine of 150 thousand rubles for using someone else’s license plate.
An important detail is that throughout the entire consideration of the case, the lawyers of the defendants Tatyana Shmeleva, Aidar Zakirov and Lyudmila Yakovleva argued that the young people did not know about the millions in the safe. According to the defenders, Shakirov deliberately did not say that they were actually going to rob the investigative committee, and this may be an kurtosis of the performer (according to Article 36 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, the perpetrator commits a crime that is not covered by the intent of other accomplices, for the kurtosis of the performer other accomplices crimes are not subject to criminal liability – ed.). For this reason, the defense asked to reclassify the case under Part 2 of Art. 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Theft with significant damage”). In the worst case, under this article, the defendants could face up to 5 years in prison.
The court believed that they did not know about the millions
Karabaev, Nurgaliyev and Elinson were brought to court in good spirits. They smiled and looked at each other. They did not seem at all embarrassed by the numerous cameras of journalists directed in their direction. And such attention of the press, by the way, fell upon them for the second time since the moment of arrest.
In order to support the defendants, their relatives came to court. They took up almost half of the small courtroom. During the five minutes before the start of the process, they tried to snatch at least a little attention from their loved ones on the other side of the aquarium: they took photographs of them for memory, said something in a whisper, and even drew hearts in the air. However, their support was expressed even in the views directed towards the defendants.
The lawyers of the defendants in the case were visibly nervous. For all the past court sessions, they made it clear that they are absolutely sincerely worried about the fate of their clients.
Soon federal judge Adel Galeev entered the hall and began to read out the operative part of the verdict. It should be noted that the reasons for such a decision were not announced at the meeting, but, according to the interlocutors of our newspaper, “classified details” of the case related to the fled accomplice could have influenced.
From the text of the decision, it became clear that the court still believed that the defendants in the case did not know about 14 million rubles in the stolen safe. So, when passing the sentence, the court reclassified the article “Theft on an especially large scale” (clause b, part 4, article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) into “Theft with significant damage” (clause a, b, part 2, article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) .
The court appointed Karabaev, Elinson and Nurgaliyev to 3 years in a general regime penal colony. Nurgaliyev was completely acquitted under Part 1 of Art. 325 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Unlawful possession of a state registration mark”) due to the lack of corpus delicti with the right to rehabilitation.
What’s next for them
Such a mild democratic sentence pleased both the defendants in the case and their lawyers. And did he arrange the prosecutor’s office? In an interview with a BUSINESS Online correspondent, the assistant prosecutor of the Vakhitovsky district, Ruslan Baibikov, said that the assessment of the verdict would be given only after it was received.
It should be noted that in the absence of an appeal by the prosecutor’s office, all three defendants will have a very short time. Provided that the day spent in the pre-trial detention center is counted as 1.5 days in custody, all three have to spend exactly one year in the colony. They were in pre-trial detention for 1 year 4 months, and in terms of a day for 1.5, it turns out 24 months – exactly 2 years.
There is an even more favorable scenario for them. According to Art. 79 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, having served a third of the actual term, Karabaev, Nurgaliev and Elinson can receive parole. They will have the opportunity to submit such a petition 10 days after the entry into force of the verdict, that is, if today’s decision is not appealed.
In the near future, the fate of the alleged organizer of the robbery, ex-investigator Shakirov, whose case was separated into a separate proceeding, will be decided in the Vakhitovsky District Court. In the debate, the prosecutor’s office asked for 7 years in prison for him.