Novosibirsk Mall Owner Arrested Following Deadly Collapse

The Pervomaysky District Court of Novosibirsk recently ordered the arrest of the owner of the collapsed shopping center on Naumova Street, Novosibirsk entrepreneur Sergei Turkov. Investigators from the Investigative Committee (SK) suspect him of providing services that did not meet safety requirements and resulted in a person«s death. NGS journalists attended the arrest hearing and heard the position of the investigators, who demanded the businessman be sent to a pretrial detention center (SIZO), his lawyers, who believed that the case should first be understood before assigning blame, and the accused himself.

So many people wanted to attend the hearing on the measure of restraint for Novosibirsk entrepreneur Sergei Turkov that the judge even had to switch to a larger room — in addition to representatives of Novosibirsk and federal media, relatives of the accused businessman came to the Pervomaysky District Court. Although the investigation, the state prosecutor, and the defense lawyers of the alleged culprit of the tragedy all asked for the proceedings to be held in closed session, it was not closed, and Sergei Turkov had to give testimony under the gaze of cameras.

The investigation believes that the owner of the two-story shopping center on Naumova Street is responsible for its collapse, the death of one person, and a serious injury to another. The third victim in the case, Siberian woman Tatiana B., was almost unharmed only by a miracle.

According to the Rusprofile service, Sergei Turkov is registered as an individual entrepreneur with the main type of activity being management of own and leased property. Moreover, since 2009, he has owned three companies with a total turnover of 57 million rubles (approximately $570,000 at current rates) and revenue of 1.4 million rubles (approximately $14,000 at current rates) as of the end of 2024. One of the companies (OOO «Vysoky», 50% owned by Turkov) is engaged in ore and precious metal mining, the other two (both called OOO «MS-Group») — in installation and finishing work.

«The preliminary cause of the incident is violations committed during the operation and maintenance of the building,» commented the regional investigative department of the SK on the initiation of a criminal case under Part 2 of Article 238 of the Russian Criminal Code (providing services that do not meet safety requirements, resulting in the negligent death of a person).

On January 22, Sergei Turkov was detained in the investigator«s office, and a petition for his arrest for the next two months was filed with the court. Otherwise, in the investigation»s opinion, the businessman could flee, destroy documents not yet seized, or otherwise influence the investigation of the case.

The defense, unsurprisingly, insisted on any milder measure of restraint, and in addition to the purely legal argument that Turkov himself did not directly provide any services to the victims, meaning the wrong person is being targeted for criminal liability, the lawyers presented arguments much more understandable to a non-lawyer: according to the protocol of a lawyer«s interview of one of Sergei Turkov»s subordinates read in court, the building might originally have been constructed in such a way that even the most careful maintenance would not have saved the shopping center from collapse.

According to the document read in court, the snow on the shopping center«s roof was last cleaned on December 31, 2025, and two years before that, in 2023, a roof examination was conducted (the results of the study were not announced in court, but the fact that spaces in the store continued to be leased suggests that its condition was deemed satisfactory).

«The investigation, without having thoroughly understood the causes of the building»s collapse yet, and considering the public resonance, somewhat hurried with ... the petition for a measure of restraint. The causes of the building«s collapse have indeed not been established. From the testimony, it clearly follows that the person was involved in matters related to snow removal, and the last snow removal was carried out in December 2025,» stated Sergei Turkov«s defender. »Sergei Turkov did not participate in the design of the building; the documentation was prepared by an authorized organization, permitted for this activity and having a license. He himself has no relation to that organization.«

The name of the «authorized organization» remained unnamed due to investigation secrecy, and the question of how legally the shopping center building was erected and how it nevertheless began to function was not raised — but more on that below.

Sergei Turkov himself categorically assured the court that he did not intend to hide or hinder investigators from understanding the circumstances and causes of the tragedy.

«I was driving through the city, I was called and told [about the building collapse], I immediately came to the scene and asked the Emergencies Ministry (EMERCOM) employees how I could help. They sent me to the headquarters, and I helped as much as I could. ... I was in contact with the tenants, finding out where people might have remained, was ready to help with heavy equipment [for clearing the rubble],» the entrepreneur stated in court.

His words were confirmed by the head of the EMERCOM operational headquarters, who did not come to court, but his testimony was read by the lawyers during the proceedings. Moreover, according to Sergei Turkov, he offered material assistance to the family of the deceased cashier and has not provided it yet only because the shocked relatives of the man have not yet understood what exactly they need.

The accused also assured the court that he did not try to obstruct investigators or hide: he himself came for questioning, during which he was detained, and voluntarily handed over to the men in uniform all documents related to the shopping center on Naumova, as well as his computer and mobile phone.

All these arguments, however, did not impress the judge: according to her decision, at least for the next month and 28 days, Sergei Turkov will spend in custody.

According to the entrepreneur«s defenders, they will definitely try to appeal this decision.

A Building of Iron and Legal Battles

The criminal case on the collapse of the shopping center was initially initiated against unidentified persons, and it is not excluded that in the end Sergei Turkov will not be the only accused in it.

In theory, questions from the investigation could arise for the person responsible for snow cleaning in the building (according to Sergei Turkov, it was handled by a specific person, and between the last cleaning and the day of the collapse, two snowfalls hit Novosibirsk). In case experts conclude that the collapse occurred not due to improper operation but due to the construction itself — questions will be directed at the employees of the aforementioned design organization, as well as at those involved in legalizing the building.

According to the Novosibirsk city hall, the building, which later became the ill-fated shopping center, was built by Sergei Turkov in 2017 without permission, and officials did not allow him to put the resulting administrative building into operation. After that, Sergei Turkov and the city hall resolved the issue of the two-story structure in court (over two years, representatives of the city and the businessman participated in four proceedings). Initially, municipal officials wanted the developer to demolish the unfortunate shopping center. But then they reconciled with its existence.

«According to expert conclusions, the building does not pose a threat to the life and health of citizens, was erected in accordance with construction, urban planning norms and rules, and fire safety requirements,» the arguments of Sergei Turkov«s representative are cited in the text of the court ruling.

According to court documents, over two years the building evolved. Initially built on a plot for individual housing construction (IHS) as a car wash that considered itself a garage, it quickly acquired a second floor and ambitions of an administrative building. The land designation also changed. In September 2018, the Pervomaysky District Court issued a ruling approving a settlement agreement between the businessman and a representative of the Novosibirsk city hall. According to it, Sergei Turkov undertook to use the building for consumer services and pay all expenses for the civil case, including the examination.

Previously, we listened to two women who entered a clothing store in the shopping center on January 21 and heard their stories. All NGS publications about the collapse are collected in one place.