Ex-governor of Russia's Kursk region held over embezzlement of defence funds

The former governor of Russia's Kursk region, parts of which were seized by Ukrainian forces in August 2024, has been detained and charged with embezzling money earmarked for building defences, Russia's interior ministry said on Thursday.

Alexei Smirnov was head of the western region when Ukrainian troops smashed across the border in a large-scale incursion. Since then, a Russian offensive has ejected most of the Ukrainian forces.

Smirnov led the region from May to December 2024, when he was replaced by Alexander Khinshtein. Smirnov was detained along with his former deputy, Alexei Dedov. A Moscow court placed Smirnov in pre-trial detention for two months.

In a statement posted on Telegram, the interior ministry said the charges concerned funds that had been allocated for building defensive structures in the border province.

It said the case was related to previous arrests on abuse of office charges of three Kursk region officials and businessmen responsible for building defences. At the time, media reported that the damages related to that case were around 800 million roubles ($9.64 million).

Neither Smirnov nor a representative for him could be contacted for comment.

In the first hours of Ukraine's August incursion into Kursk, Smirnov repeatedly offered assurances that the situation was under control, even as Russian border guards were left reeling and in retreat by the surprise attack.

Days later, Smirnov was gently reprimanded by President Vladimir Putin during a televised meeting for focusing on the military situation in his report to the head of state, rather than on efforts to help civilians in the Kursk region.

Russia has in the past year detained a string of top military officials, including a former deputy defence minister, amid a flurry of high-level corruption cases.