Kirill Cherkalin was bribed directly to the Lubyanka

Details of cooperation of the security officer with bankers are disclosed.
01.10.2019
Kommersant
Origin source
As Kommersant learned, Kirill Cherkalin, the head of the K department of the FSB’s department in the Lefortovo jail on charges of bribery, brought money directly to work. The main fighter against corruption in the country's financial system received illegal remuneration from bankers through intermediaries at the entrance to the building where his office is located, or in a cafe on Lubyanka Square. They wanted to arrest the alleged bribe-giver for fraud, but then made a witness for the prosecution.

Colonel Cherkalin, who has become a symbol of corruption in the FSB, is accused by the Main Directorate for Investigating Particularly Important Cases of the Investigative Committee of Russia (TFR) of receiving bribes on an especially large scale and the same especially large fraud (part 6 of article 290 and part 4 of article 159 UK).

As follows from the documents available to Kommersant, one of the episodes accused of Colonel Cherkalin by a bribe-giver (part 5 of article 291 of the Criminal Code) is held by the ex-owner of Transportniy Design Bureau, Alexander Mazanov, and through mediation (part 4 of article 291.1 UK) the former FSB colonel Mikhail Gorbatov and the founder of the European Moscow Region LLC Arno Khojoyan are accused between him and the banker.

It should be noted that Kirill Cherkalin served in state security bodies since 1998, and was appointed to his last post as head of the 2nd Department of Management “K” of the FSB Economic Security Service in 2011. His responsibilities included conducting counter-intelligence activities in the financial, banking and banking sectors, aimed at identifying, preventing and suppressing actions by persons detrimental to Russia's economic security, as well as combating corruption in the central office and divisions of the Central Bank of Russia.

In 2005, during one of the developments, Kirill Cherkalin met Mikhail Gorbatov, who worked in the "K" department. However, a year later, Colonel Gorbatov (served in the FSB since 1993) was transferred to the Chekist apparatus, who were seconded to various state organizations and services, the so-called facilities. In one of them, the presidential administration of Russia, Colonel Gorbatov, while continuing to serve in the bodies, headed the control and inspection department of the president’s office for ensuring the constitutional rights of citizens.

Colonels Cherkalin and Gorbatov, the investigation established, after that they practically did not see each other, only occasionally exchanging messages by electronic instant messengers or calls.

In the fall of 2013, according to the SKRO GRVD, Colonel Gorbatov met Arno Khojoyan, whose main business was to attract VIP clients to Transportny Design Bureau. The fact is that co-owner of the bank Alexander Mazanov shortly before this appointed Mr. Khojoyan as his adviser, who was supposed to solve issues with law enforcement and regulatory authorities. Mikhail Gorbatov told the representative of the bank that he himself was not suitable for the role of the “roof”, but he knew many large officials in the FSB and the Ministry of Internal Affairs who would help him.
A few days later, according to the investigation, Colonel Gorbatov, meeting with Cherkalin, the head of the 2nd Department of Management "K", agreed that he would help Transportny for a fee. Banker Mazanov offered to pay the Chekist for a specific job or action, but Colonel Cherkalin, according to investigators, through intermediaries insisted on receiving $ 50 thousand a month for "general protection" of Transport Bank.

Payments, which, according to the investigation, as a result, Alexander Mazanov was forced to personally approve, having allocated funds for this, were made from November 2013 to February 2015.

Obviously, having a certain percentage (this moment is not specified in the criminal case), Colonel Gorbatov received money from Mr. Khojoyan, which he took to Kirill Cherkalin.
As the investigation established, the transfer of dollars was carried out during meetings of colonels on the street or in a cafe located near the FSB building (Lubyanka Square, 2). In total, $ 750 thousand was paid to the anti-corruption fighter in this way. However, when the bank really needed the services of Colonel Cherkalin, he demanded a bonus.

From November 2014 to February 2015, the Central Bank checked the activities of CB Transportny, drawing up an act in which it said that the management of the bank did not adequately assess the level of credit risk for some borrowers. In this regard, the bank was given recommendations on increasing the reserve for possible losses on loans by 1.3 billion rubles. Mr. Mazanov did not have this amount, therefore, through intermediaries, he asked Colonel Cherkalin to resolve the issue with its reduction, since otherwise the bank's activities could be paralyzed. A new audit, which a few days later was carried out by employees of the 2nd branch of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation in the Central Federal District, reduced the amount to 522 million rubles.

By the way, shortly before this, on the recommendation of Colonel Cherkalin, transmitted through intermediaries, CB Transportny changed the place of registration and office to move from the 1st branch of the Central Bank of the Central Federal District to the Central Federal District in the 2nd, since the head of the latter, it is noted in the case, was “Confidant” of the Chekist. For the salvation of 778 million, and possibly the bank, Colonel Cherkalin, according to the investigation, paid $ 100 thousand "premium" at the central building of the FSB. Thus, according to the accusation brought against the colonel, he received a bribe totaling $ 850 thousand, or 52 million rubles, only from Transportny. at the rate of the Central Bank.

Admitting his guilt, Colonel Cherkalin told the investigation about several more banks in which he received monthly and one-time payments.
However, these amounts did not match the assets discovered by the officer and his agents. The Prosecutor General’s Office, we recall, is going to turn the property of Kirill Cherkalin into the state’s income, having officially earned a little over 17.5 million rubles over the years of service, estimated at 6.3 billion rubles, including five apartments, two country houses, and 800 million rub., $ 72 million and € 8 million in cash. It should be noted that most of the funds were in an apartment purchased specifically for their storage. It is known that Colonel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Dmitry Zakharchenko did the same, with assets of almost 9 billion rubles confiscated.

Mikhail Gorbatov, who testified against Colonel Cherkalin as part of a pre-trial agreement on cooperation, is now serving four and a half years in prison by the verdict of the 235th garrison military court (Kommersant spoke about this in detail on July 29 this year). He received the term for several frauds in relation to the owner of the capital's pawnshop, which for a large fee promised to be held criminally liable and to return the seized watches of prestigious Swiss brands. In the same case, Mr. Khojoyan received conditionally five years. As for the co-owner of Transport, Alexander Mazanov, the Investigative Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs since April of this year several times tried to arrest him in absentia in the Tver District Court for fraud. The investigation believed that Mr. Mazanov could be involved in the withdrawal of large sums from the bank - the Central Bank revoked the license from Transport, which remained owed to creditors about 40 billion rubles. in 2015 for a high-risk policy and loss of equity. However, judging by the database of the Moscow City Court, in August the arrest request was withdrawn. Perhaps this was due to the fact that the ex-banker fell under the witness protection program in a case under investigation by the TFR. In the documents that were made public in the courts in the case of Kirill Cherkalin, the bribe giver was called a certain Nazarov. The search, as follows from the response of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to the request of Kommersant, Alexander Mazanov is not listed.

Crime

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