according to locals reportA senior Russian official, Marat Tambiev, has been accused of accepting $28 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) as a bribe from a hacker group he was investigating. According to the report, this is the highest amount ever received in a single bribery case in Russia.
Tambiyev was head of the investigative department of the Tverskoy district committee of the city of Moscow until he was dismissed for corruption. Authorities found 1,032.1 BTC hidden in Tambiev’s laptop, which was seized during a search of his Moscow apartment several months ago, according to the report.
The deputy prosecutor general noted that Tambiev received 11.7 million rubles (less than $150,000) during his tenure on the Investigative Commission. He said the fact that he owned $28 million worth of bitcoin “indicates that he received property from unregulated sources.”
According to authorities, Tambiyev received a bribe on April 7, 2022 from hacker group Infraud Organization Mark and its members Konstantin Bergmanov and Kirill Samokchaevsky. According to the report, Tambiev accepted bribes in exchange for not seizing the illegal assets of the hackers under investigation.
The report said the hackers were given sentences of two-and-a-half to three-and-a-half years. Authorities recovered about $8.6 million worth of bitcoin from them.
According to reports, Tambiev is scheduled to appear in court on June 5, when prosecutors will demand the confiscation of all ill-gotten funds. He continues to fight the allegations and denies his corruption allegations. He recently filed a lawsuit with the Investigative Committee and sought reinstatement as the investigation is ongoing and the charges have not been proven. However, the lawsuit was dismissed after an official audit proved corruption, the report said.
A Russian official detained for accepting a record 28 million BTC bribe first appeared on CryptoSlate.
