Russian police authorities arrested former Kursk area governor Alexei Smirnov, several media outlets reported Wednesday, citing authorities sources.The Vedomosti company paper said law enforcement agents carried out investigative actions involving Smirnov, though its sources did not say whether he had been officially charged with any criminal activities.
His formerfirst deputy, Alexei Dedov, was also detained, TASS reported.According to the Interfax news agency, Smirnovs arrest is connected to a criminal investigation into the alleged embezzlement of federal government funds indicated for constructing defense strongholds along the border with Ukraine.Telegram news channels with purported ties to Russian law enforcement agencies claimed that Kursk Region Development Corporation CEO Vladimir Lukin, who is facing trial in the exact same border defense case, affirmed versus Smirnov.Smirnov acted as guv for just over 200 days before stepping down in December.
President Vladimir Putin changed him with State Duma lawmaker Alexander Khinshtein.Several months into Smirnovs period, Ukrainian forces launched a surprise attack into the Kursk area, displacing thousands of homeowners from their homes near the border with Ukraine.
A few of those who handled to get away locations recorded by Ukrainian forces staged demonstrations, implicating both local officials and the Kremlin of failing to compensate them for their lost homes.In current weeks, Russian soldiers have reclaimed much of the Kursk area, though a small portion reportedly remains under Ukrainian control.Smirnov appeared to fall out of favor with Putin throughout the early days of the incursion, when the Kremlin leader publicly cut him off mid-sentence as he attempted to brief him on Ukrainian military gains in the border region.Meanwhile, the local branch of the Interior Ministry informed the state-run RIA Novosti news firm that it had no information concerning Smirnovs arrest.Scrutiny over the Kursk regions surround defenses has magnified given that Ukrainian forces introduced their cross-border incursion, apparently fulfilling very little resistance.In October, policesearchedthe business of controversial local lawmaker Maxim Vasilyev, who had actually dealt with accusations of border defense failures.
Vasilyev openly blamed filmmaker Nikita Mikhalkov for sensationalizing the situation.