A court on Tuesday, the 16th of January, sentenced a former senior National Guard officer to six years in a colony after finding him guilty of purchasing equipment incapable of protecting the Crimean bridge, citing the state news agency TASS, reports Reuters.
Colonel Sergei Volkov, as reported by TASS, had bought two radar-based air defence systems for 395 million roubles (4.1 million euros), which were meant to prevent Ukrainian drone attacks.
A Moscow military court found Volkov guilty of abusing his official position, saying
the equipment needed to be modernised and upgraded to be effective.
Volkov has reportedly denied his guilt, saying that he acted in accordance with the law and that the equipment was intended to protect National Guard soldiers in various locations.
The bridge, a signature project for Russian President Vladimir Putin, was unveiled in 2018 and became a target for Ukrainian forces after the Russian invasion in February 2022. The bridge suffered severe damage in October 2022, caused by a powerful explosion.
Initially, Russian officials attributed the explosion on the bridge to a truck explosion, though in July 2023, the Ukrainian security services claimed responsibility for the explosion.
Also read: VIDEO | section of Crimean bridge collapses after explosions
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