Russian deputy defence minister was arrested because of special operation by Ukrainian intelligence

Roman Kravets, VALENTYNA ROMANENKO — Wednesday, 24 April 2024, 15:54

Russian Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov is in a Russian detention centre and being prosecuted by the Putin regime as a result of active measures taken by Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU).

Source: Ukrainska Pravda sources at DIU  

Details: In March 2024, DIU conducted a special operation that resulted in them gaining access to a significant amount of confidential information and official documents belonging to Russian Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov, who is Sergei Shoigu's deputy.

The source told Ukrainska Pravda that although Russia responded and made attempts to secure the relevant servers, the cyberattack was successful and achieved its objective.

Shortly after Ukrainian intelligence gained access to Ivanov’s official documents, Russian investigative authorities opened an investigation against him on corruption charges. As a result, Ivanov has been remanded in custody on suspicion of bribe-taking.

The Ukrainska Pravda source noted that the Kremlin had been well aware that Timur Ivanov took bribes, but that wasn’t sufficient for him to be brought to justice. It was the media coverage of the information leak and the fact that the information had reached Ukrainian intelligence – not the bribe-taking – that was the real reason for his prosecution and arrest.

Quote: "Everyone knew he was a key corrupt official in the Russian Ministry of Defence, and it was public knowledge thanks to journalistic investigations that confirmed this irrefutably numerous times, particularly in the context of Russian crimes in Mariupol. But ‘sanctions’ were only imposed against Ivanov after this large leak of sensitive data occurred."

Background:

  • On the evening of 23 April, Russian Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov was detained on suspicion of taking a bribe. Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin had been informed of Ivanov's detention, and that Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu had been warned in advance.
  • Vazhnye Istorii (Important Stories), a Russian media outlet, stated that the real reason for Ivanov’s arrest was treason.
  • In April 2023, Ukrainska Pravda spotted Ivanov's wife Svetlana at the Courchevel ski resort in the French Alps (the relevant video investigation is available with English subtitles).

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