"Threw flammable substances through the dormer window"

Who set fire to the Lopukhins' estate in the center of Moscow



A source of the VChK-OGPU telegram channel and Rucriminal.info reported that a version of arson appeared in the case of a fire in the Lopukhins' estate in Moscow. The investigation was put under control in the central office of the TFR.

Recall that on December 10, a building built in the 17th century caught fire in Maly Znamensky Lane. A firefighter was injured during the fire. The object of cultural heritage is in the operational management of the Museum of the Peoples of the East. On behalf of the chairman of the TFR, Alexander Bastrykin, a criminal case was initiated in the capital's GSU under the article of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation "Violation of safety rules during construction or other work."

According to the interlocutor of Rucriminal.info, the estate needed restoration and emergency work. This is influenced by the solid age of the building, and illegal redevelopment made by previous operators. The Ministry of Culture allocated money for the restoration of the monument and part of the work has already been carried out (injection has been done). But at the time of the fire, no work was being done in the building: the estate was “mothballed” for the winter - all the exhibits were taken out of it, and the tools were removed to the basement.

With regard to compliance with fire safety measures, everything turned out to be in order here too. Three years ago, in Maly Znamensky Lane, employees of the Ministry of Emergency Situations conducted a scheduled on-site inspection and revealed 14 violations. The last time the inspectors visited the facility a few months before the emergency and stated that 12 violations had been eliminated (including one of the main violations for such facilities - the premises were treated with a special fire-fighting composition), and a period of up to 2024 was given to finalize the remaining ones.

The version with careless handling also did not find its confirmation. On the part of the managing organization, security guards and plumbers entered the estate, who regularly checked the heating. But the results of the inspection of the building after the fire gave rise to the consideration of a possible arson. So, according to the investigation, the fire was in the attic next to the dormer window. Outside the building, scaffolding was installed in the immediate vicinity, through which attackers could climb up and throw flammable substances into the estate.

The circle of potential suspects is not large. The first on the list is the International Center of the Roerichs, which lost all court cases to the Museum of the Peoples of the East and announced a “raider seizure” of the estate.

To be continued

Yuri Prokov

Source: www.rucriminal.info