Ex-Head of Russia’s Kursk Region Gets 14 Years in Jail for Graft
Former Governor of Russia's Kursk region Alexei Smirnov attends a court hearing via a video link on a screen in Moscow City Court on July 16.
Photographer: AFP/Getty ImagesThe former governor of Russia’s Kursk region, who was in office during Ukraine’s 2024 incursion into the border area, was sentenced to 14 years in prison on bribery charges linked to wartime fortification contracts.
A court in Kursk found Alexey Smirnov guilty of taking large-scale bribes and handed down a sentence one year shorter than the 15-year term sought by prosecutors, the Interfax news service reported from the courtroom Monday. The former official also was fined 400 million rubles ($5.1 million).