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- Family matters: the ex-mayor of Sochi and his wife were given 24 years for corruption for two
Family matters: the ex-mayor of Sochi and his wife were given 24 years for corruption for two
Multimillion—dollar fines, confiscation of property and years behind bars - this was the finale of the high-profile Kopaigorodsky family case. At the announcement of the verdict, two children of the former mayor of Sochi and his wife were in the courtroom: the 15-year-old daughter, upon hearing the verdict, burst into tears. The defendants' defense has already announced its intention to appeal the decision. At the same time, a significant part of the trial was devoted not only to discussing the financial episodes of the investigation, but also to attempts by its defendants to influence witnesses. For more information about the course of this process and its results, see the Izvestia article.
From the post of mayor to the pre-trial detention center
Alexey Kopaygorodsky was detained in September 2024. He was charged with especially large-scale embezzlement (Article 160 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). At that time, the ex-official was listed as a participant in a special military operation. In May, he resigned as the head of the city, and during his short service he managed to receive the medal "For Bravery." Together with him, Yanina Kopaygorodskaya's wife became involved in the case — she, like her husband, was a participant in her own. Both pleaded not guilty and stated during the investigation that they wanted to return to the front.
At the end of January 2025, the investigation added a new episode: Kopaygorodsky was charged with receiving a bribe in the amount of 43 million rubles (Article 290 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), and his wife was charged with mediating its transfer (Article 291 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). Later, charges of money laundering appeared in the case (Articles 174 and 174.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
For the first six months after her detention, Yanina was under house arrest. In March, the court sent her to jail, tightening the measure of restraint. According to investigators, while at home, she, through her assistant Alexander Pasunko, put pressure on witnesses and forced them to give false testimony. Thus, in the Kopaygorodskaya case, another episode was initiated — about coercion to give false testimony (part 2 of Article 309 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation).
What kind of bribes
According to the prosecution, Alexey Kopaygorodsky received bribes mainly from developers and took not only money, but also real estate.So, according to the case file, the ex-official, through an intermediary, purchased four apartments from businessman Arsen Mkrtchyan at a reduced price. The "discount" was made in return for loyalty to his construction companies.
In addition, the investigation believes that in 2022-2024 Kopaygorodsky illegally obtained two plots next to his house. Initially, the municipal land was leased to an English teacher and a general practitioner, who had the right to receive priority hectares for housing construction. They bought the plots for 2.5% of the cadastral value — for about 50 thousand rubles. Then the land passed to the family's lawyer Polina Chernyshenko, who transferred one of the plots to Yanina Kopaygorodskaya. The investigation estimated the damage to the budget at 26.2 million rubles.
Yanina herself claimed during the investigation that she had donated the land to a charitable foundation. According to the state prosecution, the deal was fictitious.
In total, Alexey Kopaigorodsky was accused of four counts of accepting bribes from developers for 319 million rubles, legalizing another 121 million and embezzling municipal property. In addition to these episodes, his wife was also charged with forcing a witness to give false testimony.
During the debate, the prosecutor requested 21 years in prison and a fine of 500 million rubles for the former mayor, 16 years and the same fine for his wife. The defense, on the contrary, insisted on acquittal, arguing that the defendants' guilt had not been proven.
— The prosecution relies on witness statements, financial and property documents, information about alleged transfers of funds and the performance of work. But the presence of a large array of materials does not mean that the charges are proven. Especially with regard to Yanina: she was not an official and had no authority. Being the mayor's wife is a family status, not a form of complicity," her lawyer, Elizaveta Metkina, insisted in a conversation with Izvestia before the sentencing.
Billions in the state account
In January of this year, the Khostinsky district Court of Sochi satisfied the claim of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation and converted the property of the family of the former mayor in the amount of about 1.6 billion rubles into state income. The prosecutor's office concluded that the incomes of the official and his wife did not correspond to the standard of living of the family.
Former head of the resort city of Sochi Alexey Kopaigorodsky in the Meshchansky District Court of Moscow
As a result, more than 70 properties in Krasnodar, the Leningrad region, Gelendzhik, Sochi, St. Petersburg and Moscow were transferred to the state. Most of the apartments and houses were registered to Yanina Kopaigorodskaya. In addition, the Prosecutor General's Office pointed to a collection of elite wine, jewelry worth more than 50 million rubles and a collection of watches.
As Izvestia previously reported, over ten years of public service, Kopaigorodsky's average income was about 16.3 million rubles. At the same time, neither apartments nor cars were registered to him.
Sentence
The verdict was announced by two children of the defendants — 25-year-old son David and 15-year-old daughter Alice. Three more young children stayed at home. While waiting for the verdict in the aquarium, the couple hugged and talked about something.
The court found the spouses guilty in each of the episodes: Alexey Kopaygorodsky was sentenced to 15 years in a high—security penal colony, his wife to nine years of general regime. Assistant Alexander Pasunko got off with a fine of 190 thousand rubles.
Both Alexey and Yanina were fined 500 million rubles. The former mayor was stripped of state awards and 319 million rubles were separately confiscated from him for state revenue. The court also satisfied the claim of the Sochi administration for 26 million rubles.
After the verdict was announced, Kopaigorodsky's daughter burst into tears. The girl brought her book to the court, in which she talked about the situation in the family and described how she feels after her parents' arrest.
"This is a harsh punishment for young children who turned out to be useless to anyone, their rights and interests were not taken into account," Elizabeth Metkina, Kopaigorodskaya's lawyer, commented on the verdict.
According to her, the kids are now being raised by their older brother David and sister Alice. My paternal grandmother is seriously ill, but there are no relatives on my mother's side.
The lawyers believe that none of the episodes of receiving a bribe were proven in court. The defense intends to appeal the verdict and hopes that it will not stand in the court of cassation.
— There were no confrontations with the so-called bribe-givers at the investigation stage. A number of them, such as Mkrtchyan, were interested parties. Others said they donated funds to the needs of the city. None of them said that they had discussed the amount with the mayor or given him the money personally. There was no question of a spouse at all," insists Konstantin Trapaidze, the convicts' lawyer.
Former Sochi Mayor Alexei Kopaigorodsky and his wife Yanina
Alexey Petukhov, the lawyer for the ex-mayor's wife, noted that the accusation is based on the testimony of several intermediaries who gave contradictory testimony. The defense also believes that the court should have applied a stay of execution to Yanina Kopaygorodskaya until her minor children turned 14.
— In our opinion, by refusing to grant a postponement, the court ignored the norms of legislation and all the recommendations and legal positions of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation. He has repeatedly pointed out that a postponement is possible on condition of a positive behavior of the person, his conscientious attitude towards fulfilling the duties of raising a child. The principle of humanism and respect for the individual should be given paramount importance," Petukhov is convinced.
The right to delay
However, the lawyers interviewed by Izvestia emphasize that the court has the right to grant a reprieve, but is not obligated to do so.
— In general, such a measure could be applied to a mother with many children: the courts annually use it under Article 82 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation against thousands of convicts. So, according to the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, 1,871 people raising a child were granted a postponement in 2022 alone," explains lawyer Alexander Karavaev.
Lawyer, adviser to the ICA "Sobranie" Yuri Piyagin notes that the presence of children can mitigate the punishment, but in itself does not oblige the court to postpone its execution.
— The court could have refused, considering Kopaigorodskaya's behavior and assessing the possibility of correcting her in raising children. If the impact on the witness was established and the court referred to this circumstance, it could influence the decision. But without the reasoning part of the verdict, it is impossible to reliably name the reason for the refusal or claim that the interests of the children were ignored.
However, this practice is no exception. According to the Supreme Court, 2,046 convicts received suspended sentences in 2023, and 1,029 more in the first half of 2024. Thus, the presence of minor children gives convicts the opportunity to request such a measure, but the final decision in each case remains with the court.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
