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- Declaration on waste: the garbage kings from Nalchik could deceive the state for half a billion
Declaration on waste: the garbage kings from Nalchik could deceive the state for half a billion
The main beneficiaries of the garbage business in Kabardino-Balkaria, which has attracted the attention of investigators, may be members of the Gedgagov family living in Nalchik. They control both the regional operator itself, the Ecologistika company, and its contractors, who won contracts worth hundreds of millions of rubles on an uncontested basis, Izvestia found. On June 10, investigators conducted more than 30 searches at addresses related to Ecologistics and arrested the company's CEO, Rustam Kochesokov. The management of the largest garbage disposal operator in the CBD is accused of tax fraud for 500 million rubles. According to the Investigative Committee, the organization entered into fictitious transactions with one-day firms to unreasonably underestimate tax payments and obtain illegal VAT deductions. The details of the business of the republican—scale garbage kings are in the Izvestia investigation.
The garbage monopolist
OOO Ekologistika received the status of a regional operator for the management of municipal solid waste in April 2018. Then the company became a monopolist in the republic — under an agreement with the government of the CBD, all three republican zones of activity of regional MSW operators came under its control. In 2020, the company changed its owner — 24-year-old entrepreneur Temirlan Zaurbekovich Gedgagov became the sole founder and CEO of Ecologistika.
At the same time, the reins of government could be concentrated in the hands of his father, Zaurbek Gedgagov, a well—known player in the republic's special equipment market. To this day, he holds the position of director at Ecologistika (it exists in the company along with the position of CEO), and Temirlan Gedgagov continues to be the sole owner of the company, whose authorized capital, according to the Federal Tax Service, is 20 billion rubles.
Two criminal cases have been initiated against the management of OOO Ecologistika on the grounds of crimes provided for in paragraph "b" of Part 2 of Article 199 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Evasion from paying taxes, fees payable by the organization, and (or) insurance premiums payable by the organization paying insurance premiums").
According to the investigation, the company, represented by CEO Rustam Kochesokov, deliberately distorted tax reports in the process of executing government contracts in order to unreasonably underestimate tax payments.
To create the appearance of the reality of the transactions carried out, one-day firms were used, registered without the purpose of actually conducting financial and economic activities. The accounting and tax reports submitted to the tax authorities reflected fictitious expenses for illegally obtaining VAT deductions.
As a result of the criminal acts committed, the budget system of the Russian Federation did not receive more than 500 million rubles in taxes.
According to the Federal Tax Service of Russia, Ecologistics' VAT arrears were incurred no later than November 2025. The total amount of arrears is more than 518 million rubles, and the company must pay another 202 million as a fine for a tax offense related to a fictitious VAT refund. According to the Federal Tax Service, the company's total debt on taxes and duties as of June 10, 2026, amounted to almost 1.5 billion rubles, including penalties, insurance premiums, and taxes on individual income. In general, the company owes more than 2.2 billion rubles to the state and creditors for enforcement proceedings opened against Ecologistika LLC. At the moment, the bank accounts are blocked.
The names of the one-day firms with which the garbage dealers concluded fictitious contracts to reduce the tax base and illegally refund VAT are not disclosed. Nevertheless, Ecologistics is engaged in government-regulated activities. In this regard, purchases in accordance with the law 223-FZ "On Procurement of Goods, Works, and Services by certain types of Legal entities" must be carried out through open auctions.
Family contract
Having studied the company's contracts, Izvestia discovered a number of significant facts about its activities. Thus, according to the Rusprofile service, LLC Garant, registered in Nalchik, has become the largest supplier of Ecologistics. This company has concluded 13 contracts with the regional operator for the "collection of non-hazardous waste" for a total amount of 576 million rubles. At the same time, transactions were concluded on a non—competitive basis - the organization acted as the sole supplier. The CEO and co-founder of Garant LLC is 35-year-old resident of the capital of the CBD Gedgagov Tuzem Zaurbekovich, according to Izvestia, this is the eldest son of the aforementioned Zaurbek Gedgagov. The second owner of the company, Madina Gadgagova, may be his wife.
Thus, Ecologistika LLC could redistribute state contracts for the export of MSW in favor of a company affiliated with close relatives of the owners of the regional operator. Back in 2020, the Federal Antimonopoly Service drew attention to the suspicious links between Ecologistics and Garant. The Federal Antimonopoly Service for the CBD found that Ecologistics was engaged in "creating obstacles to access to the commodity market or exit from the commodity market for other business entities." The reason for the proceedings was nine contracts with Garant, which allegedly became the only company that submitted bids for the auction. As a result of the proceedings, the FAS issued an order to Ecologistika to stop violating the antimonopoly legislation.
Izvestia sent a request to the Ekologistika company, but no response had been received by the time the material was published.
As the interviewed lawyers explained to Izvestia, in the contracts of the garbage operator with other firms, it could actually be about transferring money from pocket "A" to pocket "B" under fictitious contracts for the provision of services. With these agreements, the operator applied for VAT compensation and received it from the state. The money that went to affiliated companies under contracts became an expense item for the operator and was not taxed, although it could de facto remain with the owners of the company.
The likely beneficiaries, i.e. the Gedgagovs, may well be responsible for this along with the company's CEO Rustam Kochesokov, said Dmitry Krasnov, Honored Lawyer of Russia, Chairman of the Board of the Moscow Bar Association No. 1.
— When the tax service and the investigation establish that a real person, a real beneficiary, is behind all this, then, according to current practice, accounts, as well as movable and immovable property of the real beneficiary, are seized. The collection of tax claims in a criminal case is no longer only taking place within the framework of what the accountant, director has and what is "hanging" on the company, but from these comrades who are the real beneficiaries, owners of factories, steamships and everything else," the expert noted.
According to him, the heads of companies participating in tenders may be questioned as part of the investigation. They may be asked the question: "Do you really have the strength and means to implement the tender if you win?" and in addition, the availability of appropriate forces and means may be checked. Investigators can also establish the collusion of the bidders by technical means, Krasnov added.
— The winners of tenders can be identified via IP addresses: from which addresses the bidders entered. The firms could be different, but the IP addresses are the same, because you can't keep 20, 30, 40 accountants and specialists in tender procedures for each specific case," the expert noted.
Lawyers interviewed by Izvestia believe that a situation where a regional operator systematically enters into contracts with the same single supplier can lead not only to antitrust, but also to criminal consequences for bidders.
"If a regional operator is a customer under 223-FZ, it cannot choose a contractor arbitrarily, like an ordinary commercial company," said arbitration lawyer Sergey Mosolkin. — At the same time, one bid in itself does not mean a violation. But if purchases systematically take place with one participant, especially if there are family or corporate ties with persons who influence the customer, this is already a sign of a possible conflict of interests.
According to the law, persons who are personally interested in the results of the purchase should not participate in the procurement commission. Personal interest includes benefits for close relatives, including siblings, as well as related organizations, the source added.
Rolls-Royce and luxury real estate
The current CEO of Ecologistics, Rustam Kochesokov, joined the company in 2021, according to the Unified State Register of Legal Entities. He was also the head and owner of Integra Soft LLC, registered in Nalchik, which develops software. At the same time, since 2019, according to the Federal Tax Service, the company has been steadily operating at a loss, in 2024 Integra Soft went into the red by 1.6 million.
Nevertheless, the head of the garbage monopoly, despite billions of debts, does not experience financial problems. The businessman owns a Rolls-Royce Cullinan registered in Moscow and an apartment in one of the most expensive districts of the capital, on Berezhkovskaya Embankment, sources told Izvestia. Prices for these new cars will start from 65 million rubles today.
Members of the Gedgagov family live mainly in Nalchik. They own a luxurious three-storey mansion in a prestigious location on Turgenev Street by local standards, sources told Izvestia. Judging by the online panoramas, only the entrance group to the site can surpass the price of ordinary households located in the neighborhood as a whole. Real estate market experts interviewed by Izvestia reported that the cost of the entire architectural complex could exceed 70 million rubles.
At the same time, the CBD called the situation with the disposal of municipal waste in the republic catastrophic. In August 2025, about 7.5 thousand residents of the city of Prokhladny signed a petition demanding that they stop cooperating with Ecologistika as a regional waste disposal operator and choose another operator. On the company's social media pages, you can find hundreds of critical reviews from residents of the region about its work.
At the end of May 2026, Ecotechprom Municipal enterprise became the new regional MSW management operator in Kabardino-Balkaria. According to the regional authorities, today the company is forming a fleet of equipment, which will be on line in the near future.
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