Russian prosecutors seek 14 1/2-year sentence for former deputy defense minister

Russian prosecutors on Monday asked for a 14 1/2-year prison sentence for a former deputy defense minister jailed on bribery charges, according to Russian state news agency Interfax.

Timur Ivanov, 49, was arrested in April last year. He was charged with taking an especially large bribe of 1.185 billion rubles ($15.1 million) but maintains his innocence.

He and another defendant also were charged with “theft of funds by misappropriation” and “laundering of criminal proceeds by an organized group.”

The trial is being held behind closed doors.

Ivanov is one of several senior military officers arrested on corruption charges last year.

The arrests started shortly before President Vladimir Putin began his fifth term and shuffled his ally, longtime Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, into a new post.

According to the Defense Ministry’s website, Ivanov was appointed in 2016 by a presidential decree. He oversaw property management, housing and medical support for the military, as well as construction projects.

Ivanov’s arrest came nearly a month after Putin called on the Federal Security Service to “keep up a systemic anti-corruption effort” and pay special attention to state defense procurement.

Russian media reported that Ivanov oversaw some of the construction in Mariupol — a Ukrainian port city that was devastated by bombardment early in the war and occupied by Russian forces. Ivanov has been sanctioned by both the United States and the European Union.

By The Associated Press