The head of the Ministry of Defense’s Forestry Department was arrested in a bribery case

According to investigators, Zakamorny received more than 10 million rubles for general patronage of a commercial organization. This is reported by RBC, citing three sources in law enforcement agencies.

The criminal case was opened on October 8, and the official was detained that same day. The next day, the Khamovniki District Court of Moscow ordered him held in custody for two months.

After the detention, Zakamorny’s name disappeared from the list of leaders on the Ministry of Defense website. Ekaterina Kharitonova is listed as acting head of the department.

The Ministry of Defense’s Forestry and Environmental Management Department is responsible for the use and protection of forests on land belonging to the military agency, oversees lessees of forest plots, and organizes reforestation work.

Previously, the same position was held by Mikhail Borisov, who was detained in 2018 on charges of abuse of power and receiving a bribe on an especially large scale. On October 7, the court suspended proceedings in his case after Borisov signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense and went to war with Ukraine.

During the investigation, Borisov entered into a cooperation agreement with the prosecutor’s office. His testimony led to the arrest of former senior Ministry of Defense officials Dmitry Kurakin and Vladislav Kholodkov, and in November 2024 the court sentenced them to 17 and 14 years in prison respectively.

Sources

• Radio Svoboda