An unconditional lesson: Khabarovsk ex-governor Furgal was given a new sentence

The Babushkinsky district court of Moscow found the ex-governor of the Khabarovsk Territory, Sergei Furgal, guilty of organizing a criminal community and embezzling several billion rubles from an SME bank. In total, 10 defendants were involved in the case. According to the charges, in 2017-2018, the bank provided loans in excess of 2 billion rubles to companies close to Furgal, and they were stolen. In 2023, Furgal was already sentenced to 22 years in prison for organizing two murders and one attempted murder. According to the combined sentences in two cases, the ex-governor will spend 25 years in a penal colony.

What was Sergei Furgal accused of?

The former governor of the Khabarovsk Territory, Sergey Furgal, received a second term. The Babushkinsky District Court of Moscow found the ex-official guilty of embezzling over 2 billion rubles from the Russian Bank for Support of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SME Bank) and sentenced him to 23 years in prison. He was also convicted of organizing a criminal community, illegal entrepreneurship and money laundering.

"Finally, Furgal should be sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 23 years to be served in a high—security colony, together with the verdict of the Lyubertsy City Court of the Moscow region — 25 years," the judicial board announced the verdict.

According to investigators, as a State Duma deputy, in 2017-2018, Sergey Furgal created a criminal community in Moscow and the Khabarovsk Territory in order to steal the assets of the SME bank. At that time, he was involved in the commercial activities of the Torex Group enterprises, which processed ferrous scrap and metals, security activities and traded in timber.

According to the investigation, in 2018-2020, a criminal group led by Furgal and businessman Nikolai Shukhov stole over 2 billion rubles from SME Bank and $8.7 million dollars from a foreign company Global Metcorp Limited. The defendants also tried to seize the property of the Torex-Khabarovsk company in the amount of over 1.2 billion rubles, but were unable to do so. In total, there are almost a dozen and a half episodes in the case, and the total damage is estimated at 3.8 billion rubles.

Sergey Furgov pleaded not guilty to all charges. After the hearing, his lawyer Daria Gribanova told Izvestia that she would appeal the verdict.

In addition, the court sentenced nine other defendants in the case — from four years of suspended imprisonment to 20 years in a penal colony.

For example, Nikolai Shukhov, a lawyer at Torex Group enterprises, and Galina Aleynikova, the chief accountant of this company, were sentenced to 20 years in prison. Dmitry Kozlov, Deputy Director of Security at Torex-Khabarovsk, and Yuri Zolochevsky, an independent financial consultant, received the same term.

The court sentenced Vladislav Karmashkov, Financial Director of Torex-Khabarovsk, and Gennady Savochkin, director of Stroitel, LLC, to 15 years in prison, Evgenia Averyanova, director of Far Eastern Monolith, LLC, to 13 years, and Svetlana Osipenko, Deputy Chief Accountant of Torex—Khabarovsk, to 10 years.

Dmitry Golovanov, the former chairman of the Management Board of SME Bank, received the most modest four—year suspended sentence. He was accused of abuse of authority in issuing loans.

In addition, the court granted the claim of Global Metcorp LTD to recover 551.89 million rubles jointly from Sergey Furgal, Nikolai Shukhov, Galina Aleynikova and Dmitry Kozlov.

What did Furgal get his first term for?

Sergey Furgal was detained in Khabarovsk in 2020. He was charged with organizing the murders and attempted murder of entrepreneurs committed by an organized criminal group in 2004-2005 in the Khabarovsk Territory and the Amur Region.

According to investigators, in June 2004, Marat Kadyrov, a former inspector of the Mendeleevo Airport security service on Kunashir Island, acting on Furgal's instructions, threw two grenades into the garage where businessman Alexander Smolsky was staying. However, it was not possible to kill him, as one of the grenades exploded near the gate, and the second one, once inside the garage, did not explode. The investigation believed that this was how Sergey Furgal tried to eliminate a competitor who, like the former official at that time, was engaged in the acceptance of scrap metal.

The court also found that in October 2004, on Furgal's instructions, businessman Evgeny Zorya, who had purchased a reinforced concrete plant, was killed. There were lawsuits regarding this asset. The day before the decision on the disputed property was made, Furgal instructed the CEO of Alteza, Andrei Paley, to kill a competitor. In order to confuse the investigation, the perpetrator of the murder simulated a sudden conflict with Evgeny Zorya, during which he was shot.

In 2005, Furgal's ex-partner Oleg Bulatov suspected him of organizing the murder of Dawn. And he, fearing that Bulatov would testify against him, ordered him to be killed. Andrei Paley shot a businessman near his house.

In February 2023, the Lyubertsy Court of the Moscow region, based on a jury verdict, sentenced the former governor to 22 years in prison in the case of two murders, attempted murder and illegal arms trafficking.

Then the court sentenced the accomplices of the former governor. Marat Kadyrov and Andrei Paley, the perpetrators of the crimes, received 9.5 and 17 years in prison, respectively, and Andrei Karepov, a former assistant to the ex-governor, received 21 years.

Could Furgal's term have been longer

The term assigned to Sergey Furgal fits into the sanctions of those articles that were imputed to him. Organizing a criminal community is one of the most serious crimes, punishable by up to 20 years in prison, said Anton Pivovarov, a lawyer at the Moscow Sed Lex Bar Association.

However, terms such as 25 years in prison are usually associated with crimes that pose the highest public danger, such as terrorism and serial murders, said Albert Khaleyan, a criminal lawyer and partner at the Vector Prime Moscow Bar Association.

—A term of 25 years is exceptionally harsh, being at the upper limit of what is acceptable," the lawyer said. — The defense has the right to appeal, and I think it will definitely use it.

Regarding possible parole, the lawyers recalled that such a request can be submitted after serving at least three quarters of the sentence. That is, with a final term of 25 years, we are talking about serving approximately 18 years and 9 months, Albert Haleyan said.

According to Anton Pivovarov, parole under the articles under which Sergei Furgal was sentenced, although possible, is extremely rarely used.

The lawyer also noted that sentences over 20 years are not uncommon in Russian judicial practice, especially in economic terms. Such terms are more common for crimes against the sexual integrity of minors, treason, terrorist attacks, sabotage, murders of two or more persons.

However, this is possible when it comes to a combination of serious and especially serious crimes combined by long-term criminal activity, the presence of multiple episodes, the organization of a criminal community and an existing murder conviction.