St. Petersburg Investigator Accused of Falsifying Evidence

A preventive measure in the form of a ban on certain actions has been chosen for an investigator from the Main Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee for St. Petersburg. The young employee, born in 1997, is accused of committing a series of official crimes.

The Oktyabrsky District Court granted the investigation«s petition on January 16, two days after the criminal case was initiated. The charges are formulated under the following articles of the Criminal Code:

• Part 2 of Article 303 (falsification of evidence in a criminal case by an inquiry officer, investigator, prosecutor, or defender);
• Point »e« of Part 3 of Article 286 (excess of official authority out of selfish or other personal interest);
• Part 2 of Article 292 (official forgery resulting in a substantial violation of the rights and legal interests of citizens).

The ban on certain actions has been set for a period of almost two months.

The accused was conducting proceedings in the case of Alexander Albin, former head of the mechanization department of St. Petersburg«s »Mostotrest«. He is accused of receiving a bribe by prior conspiracy — according to the investigation, he collected money from subordinates for official patronage. The total amount amounted to about 6.5 million rubles (approximately $72,200 at current rates).

Another accused in this case, former deputy director of «Mostotrest» Alexander Klimov, has been declared internationally wanted.

Special attention to the case was drawn by the accused«s surname. Alexander Albin is a relative of former St. Petersburg vice-governor Igor Albin. Commenting earlier on the detention, Igor Albin stated: »If guilty, answer! And it doesn«t matter if you»re a minister or a worker. But guilt must be proven in court, this is a basic principle of justice — presumption of innocence. Being honest means always remaining law-abiding.«