Russian Ex-Deputy Defence Minister Bulgakov arrested in Moscow for corruption

The Russian service of the BBC reported the information.

According to the FSB, Bulgakov was detained and arrested in Moscow as part of a criminal corruption case. No other details were provided.

Dmitry Bulgakov served as Deputy Minister of Defence from 2008 to September 2022, and was responsible for the logistics of the Russian army.

According to Meduza, Bulgakov is under sanctions from the United States, the European Union, the United Kingdom and other Western countries for supporting the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops.

Corruption in the Russian Defense Ministry

In April 2024, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu issued an order to remove Timur Ivanov from his post as deputy. Earlier, Ivanov was detained on suspicion of taking a bribe and arrested for two months, until 23 June 2024.

The court confirmed that Shoigu's deputy was accused of taking a bribe during contracting and subcontracting work for the Russian Defence Ministry.

The UK Ministry of Defence has reported that corruption in the Russian Ministry of Defence was one of the factors behind Russia's low efficiency.

Intelligence experts believe that corruption has long been a factor in the poor performance of the Russian Ministry of Defence, especially at the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, when there were suspicions of overdue rations, poor quality tyres, and fuel theft.