The growing scandal around Russian Railways, related to possible fraudulent actions in equipping Sapsan trains with wireless Internet, is acquiring increasingly sinister undertones. As Rucriminal.info and the VChK-OGPU telegram channel found out, a complex structure of corporate corruption may be behind this scheme, at the epicenter of which was the company's Deputy General Director Dmitry Pegov.
According to sources, the implementation of the contract with RM LLC was initially controlled by Pegov's entourage. Frauds with inflating the cost of work performed by hundreds of millions of rubles are apparently just the tip of the iceberg. During the inspection, it turned out that the "pocket contractor" not only included equipment that had long been installed in the trains in the estimate, but also significantly inflated the cost of purchases from subcontractors. In public statements, the management of Russian Railways claims that the company is interested in an objective investigation and intends to cooperate with the investigative bodies. However, behind the scenes, there is a clear reluctance to follow through, which may indicate an attempt to hush up the scandal at an early stage.
The head of Russian Railways Belozerov himself, according to informed sources, is in a difficult position. On the one hand, he must protect the company's reputation, and on the other, take into account the internal struggle of interests among top managers. Belozerov's direct intervention in the investigation has not yet been recorded.
The story with the Internet contracts for Sapsan trains has become just another example of management problems at Russian Railways. Multi-billion dollar losses, inflated estimates and information manipulation undermine trust in both the company and its management. If the information about Pegov's involvement in these schemes is confirmed, this could not only be a blow to his career, but also reveal new aspects of corruption in the state corporation.
It should be noted that this incident could be a turning point for Russian Railways. The future of not only the company, but also the entire transport management system in the country depends on how transparent and objective the investigation is.
Let us recall that earlier the Ministry of Internal Affairs opened a criminal case on the theft of more than 800 million rubles allocated for the Internet on Sapsan trains (Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by the Moscow Interregional Transport Prosecutor's Office (MMTP).
The prosecutor's office transferred the materials of the investigation to the police, during which it was possible to identify facts of overpricing of the work and its improper performance. According to the department, the state-owned company Russian Railways in 2017 and 2019 concluded contracts for the provision of Internet access services to passengers of Sapsan trains for more than 1.5 billion rubles.
At the same time, the contractor unlawfully included in its expenses the cost of the equipment purchased and installed on the trains. Thus, the cost of the work performed was overstated by more than 800 million rubles.
Yuri Prokov
To be continued
Source: www.rucriminal.info
