Former Director of a Department at the Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade Arrested for Embezzlement Involving Diapers

The Meshchansky District Court of Moscow remanded Dmitry Kolobov, former director of the Department for the Development of Socially Significant Goods at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, into custody until September 16 on suspicion of fraud on an especially large scale. 

The former official was detained on July 16 by officers of the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Anti-Corruption of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to investigators, he is implicated in the embezzlement of budget funds allocated for import substitution programs, with the total amount of losses potentially reaching approximately 1 billion rubles. During searches of the suspect’s premises, $30,000 in cash was discovered, and he fainted in the courtroom while the arrest warrant was being read aloud.

One of the key episodes in the investigation involves the embezzlement of more than 50 million rubles. The state had allocated these funds for an innovative project to produce adult diapers made from Russian cellulose. Dmitry Kolobov does not admit his guilt; he currently faces up to 10 years in prison. The relevant ministry has already distanced itself from the detainee, noting that he has not worked at the agency since May 2023, when he terminated his employment contract on his own initiative. Previously, the official oversaw state policy matters in light industry and the sector of essential goods.

This arrest is the latest in a series of corruption scandals within the Russian ministry. In late June, the Investigative Committee detained the head of another department at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Valentin Tsuprun. He is accused of accepting a bribe of an especially large amount in exchange for general patronage of a commercial entity, for which the official faces up to 15 years in prison.

Source: The Moscow Times.