Denis Butsaev, Russia’s former deputy natural resources minister, faces charges of large-scale fraud, the Russian state news agency TASS reported on May 13, citing law enforcement.
The criminal case centers on the embezzlement of funds from the Russian Ecological Operator (REO). Investigators have charged two former senior managers of the organization — Yekaterina Stepkina and Maxim Shcherbakov — in connection with the scheme.
Butsaev resigned on April 23 and then left Russia, according to media reports. Sources cited by the independent Russian political newsletter Faridaily said he traveled through Minsk to Tbilisi and had reached the United States by April 30. On May 12, the independent Russian news outlet Mediazona reported that Russia’s Interior Ministry had placed Butsaev on a wanted list.
Butsaev is likely the first senior official to have fled Russia under threat of criminal prosecution since a wave of repression against elites began, the independent Russian political newsletter Faridaily reported. The crackdown on senior officials has been ongoing since 2024, with the most prominent example being the prosecution of people from the inner circle of former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.
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