Authorities Search Home of Yekaterinburg Hospital Chief Doctor
Investigative actions were taken against Robert Solovyov, the chief doctor of Yekaterinburg City Hospital No. 6, and his son Alexander. The son was detained on suspicion of organizing fraud in the purchase of an expensive radiographic apparatus for the medical institution.
According to the investigation, in August 2022, when Robert Solovyov was head of the city polyclinic in Kamensk-Uralsky (a city in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia), his son Alexander received 1 million rubles (approximately $10,000 at current rates) from the director of the commercial firm MedicalTek. In exchange for this money, he promised to secure the company«s victory in the tender for the supply of an X-ray apparatus for the hospital where his father worked. Subsequently, the supply was carried out through an electronic auction.
The company MedicalTek, according to data from the service Kontur.Focus, was founded in 2016 and registered in the city of Berezovsky. Its main activity is the production of medical instruments and equipment. The general director of the firm is listed as businessman Nikita Ponomarev, who also heads Service of Technological Systems LLC.
In 2024, MedicalTek«s net profit reached 23 million rubles (approximately $230,000 at current rates). The company actively participates in government procurement: previously, it concluded 89 state contracts for a total amount of 779 million rubles (approximately $7.8 million at current rates).
According to available information, the radiographic equipment involved in the deal was not registered in the territory of the Russian Federation, which made its purchase for the hospital impossible. The money, according to the investigation, was transferred to an unidentified official who worked at the Kamensk-Uralsky hospital.
Alexander Solovyov was arrested by court decision and placed in a pre-trial detention center. A criminal case has been initiated under Article 291.1 of the Russian Criminal Code («Mediation in Bribery»). Robert Solovyov is currently not officially involved in the case. The Investigative Committee declined to comment, and the Ministry of Health has not yet responded to the request.
