Minister and Deputies Arrested in Krasnodar Over Road Scandal
On January 22 in Krasnodar, Alexei Pereverzev was detained and sent to a pre-trial detention center. Since 2017, he has held the post of Minister of Transport and Road Management. Along with Pereverzev, two of his deputies were sent to detention—Alexander Dashuk and Alexei Smaglyuk.
Earlier on the morning of January 21, the portal 93.RU wrote about searches at the homes of Pereverzev, Smaglyuk, and Dashuk. And by afternoon, Kuban Governor Veniamin Kondratyev reappointed Pereverzev to the post of transport minister.
Pereverzev and his deputies became the first major political figures detained in 2026. Moreover, he didn«t even have time to resign voluntarily, as was the case, for example, with former Kuban Deputy Governor Alexander Vlasov. Recall that the official-ataman then announced he was planning to leave his post and join the special military operation. A couple of hours later, handcuffs were placed on him right in the city center.
Pereverzev is implicated in a very large scheme for the «seizure of the road construction sector» of the region. And this sector brought huge money to «their people».
Portal 93.RU explains what the transport minister is suspected of and what cases he may be involved in.
Person
Alexei Pereverzev has served in the executive authorities of Krasnodar Krai since 2015. At that time, he held various positions in the regional transport department. At the beginning of 2016, he immediately became first deputy minister of transport. In late September 2017, he became minister. He was appointed to this post by Krasnodar Krai Governor Veniamin Kondratyev.
The main task of the ministry itself, among other things, is developing key directions of investment policy in the development of regional roads. Translating from bureaucratic language, this includes issues of repair, construction, and maintenance of these very roads.
What is the Connection?
As follows from the anti-corruption lawsuit by the General Prosecutor«s Office (available to the editorial board), Pereverzev was part of a scheme set up by Anatoly Voronovsky.
Anatoly Voronovsky from 2015 to September 2017 was the transport minister of Kuban. Essentially, Pereverzev became his successor. In 2017, when Pereverzev took the minister post, Voronovsky became deputy governor to Veniamin Kondratyev. He oversaw the fuel and energy complex and housing and utilities sector. From 2020 to 2021, Voronovsky was an advisor to the head of the region, and then was elected to the State Duma of the seventh convocation. At the end of 2025, he was stripped of parliamentary immunity on suspicion of bribery. He prematurely resigned his mandate, and then ended up in a pre-trial detention center.
Further, the lawsuit indicates that back in 2016, Voronovsky (when Pereverzev was his deputy) had the intent to receive money from road complex enterprises. He began distributing state orders (not based on competitive procedures, but at his discretion) among a narrow circle of companies. A mandatory condition for access to state orders was kickbacks—a percentage of the contract estimate.
For this scheme, he attracted trusted persons, including those detained on January 21: Pereverzev, Smaglyuk, and Dashuk. As well as the king of state contracts Alexander Karpěnko (now a deputy of the Legislative Assembly of Krasnodar Krai and a permanent contractor for most regional road constructions) and Andrey Doroshenko (now a current deputy of the State Duma).
How the scheme worked: Voronovsky prepared auctions with inflated costs of work, ensured the allocation of budget funds for their financing, organized the victory of the desired company at the auction, and signed a contract with it. Doroshenko and Karpěnko approached contractors and set the amount of «reward for Voronovsky». Those who refused to play by these rules were squeezed out of the market.
It was Voronovsky, according to the lawsuit, who lobbied for Pereverzev«s candidacy for the post of minister of transport and road management of the krai. And also for Smaglyuk and Dashuk—for the posts of deputy ministers.
Voronovsky «exerted influence on management decisions of regional authorities in the field of road activities after ceasing work in the krai administration,» using his status, the lawsuit states. With the help of controlled persons (Pereverzev, Karpěnko, Doroshenko, and others) from 2017 to 2024, almost 2 billion rubles (approximately 20 million dollars at current rates) were obtained. And the total «amount of corrupt enrichment» amounted to 2.8 billion rubles (approximately 28 million dollars). Funds were channeled through the «My Kuban» fund, which operates under the «Union of Road Workers of Kuban». The union was previously headed by Alexander Karpěnko himself.
Further, money from this fund was either withdrawn into shadow circulation or invested in their projects or used to open new companies, registering them on ex-wives, sons, daughters, and even a son-in-law, i.e., on controlled persons who were nominal owners.
Currently, the General Prosecutor«s Office requests that shares in dozens of firms related to road construction, dozens of real estate properties and land plots in Krasnodar Krai be turned over to state income. Also, Doroshenko, Karpěnko, and persons controlled by them are planned to be prohibited from opening new bank accounts, and existing property is to be seized. They are also banned from leaving the Russian Federation.
Voronovsky, ex-minister Pereverzev, and his two deputies are in a pre-trial detention center. The General Prosecutor«s Office lawsuit will be considered in the Central District Court of Sochi.
Earlier, portal 93.RU reported what participation in this scheme was taken by Legislative Assembly deputy Alexander Karpěnko, Andrey Doroshenko (now a current deputy of the State Duma), and former State Duma deputy Anatoly Voronovsky (he resigned his mandate at the end of 2025 against the backdrop of bribery suspicions).
