MOSCOW. Aug 29 (Interfax) - The 235th Garrison Military Court has ordered the arrest of former Russian Deputy Defense Minister Gen. of the Army in Reserve Pavel Popov, who was detained on fraud counts, at the investigator's motion, an Interfax correspondent said.
"A restraining measure in the form of remand in custody shall be handed down to Popov until October 29, 2024," the court's ruling said.
The court session took place in camera.
The investigator, who said that it was essential to maintain the secrecy of the preliminary investigation, requested that the court session be held behind closed doors.
Popov is charged with especially large-scale fraud. The Russian Investigative Committee said that he had been detained earlier on Thursday.
"According to the investigators, Popov, who was in charge of the development, maintenance and operations of Patriot Park in 2021-2024, enriched himself at the park's expense, conspiring with the park's director Vyacheslav Akhmedov and deputy head of the Russian Defense Ministry's Main Innovative Development Department Vladimir Shesterov, who faced criminal charges earlier," Petrenko said.
The investigators believe that "Popov organized construction, renovation and a variety of valuable deliveries to his countryside residence in the Krasnogorsk district of the Moscow region at the expense of Patriot Park."
He also forced heads of companies cooperating with Patriot Park via his subordinates to perform construction and assembly work at his countryside residence for free, the investigators said.
After the house was built and the plot was landscaped, Popov continued to receive technical support and maintenance of his land of around three hectares at the park's expense, they said.
Popov served as a deputy defense minister in 2013-2024.
Other defendants in the Popov case, Akhmedov and Shesterov, were detained in August. A court put Akhmedov in a pretrial detention facility and placed Shesterov under house arrest. The Kommersant newspaper said that both of them pleaded guilty.