In Samara, a businesswoman is suspected of stealing electricity – News from Samara and Tolyatti

The case was initiated on the basis of a statement from the First Deputy General Director of Samara Grid Company JSC Alexey Shcherbachev, who at one time was an employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Individual entrepreneur E.V. Vaskanova came under criminal prosecution. The case was initiated under clause “a”, part 2, article 165 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation – “Causing property damage by deception or abuse of trust.”

According to Constantinople, according to the investigation, individual entrepreneur Vaskanova, as part of a group of persons by prior conspiracy, in the period from January 2019 to July 2022, being consumers of electricity, by using an electricity meter with a reduction factor, rented out a garage for the placement of equipment of cellular operators and allegedly transmitted false information about amount of electricity consumed. According to the security forces, the entrepreneur received money in full from the tenants. Thus, SSK believes that they suffered property damage in the amount of 250 thousand rubles.

As for the interaction between telecom operators and premises owners, it is usually built on the basis of a competition. Operators publish information about ongoing competitions on their resources, owners apply, and then a premises that is profitable for renting equipment is determined. According to Vaskanova’s lawyer Anatoly Motin, such a market is competitive and has already been formed. And it’s quite difficult for new players to get into it. Perhaps this explains the fact that in 2021 Vaskanova received a proposal to transfer the business. At the same time, according to the lawyer, the proposal came from certain “authoritative” Moscow businessmen. After the refusal, there were hints that sooner or later the business would have to be given away, as a result of which the entrepreneur risked being left with nothing.

In turn, SSK in 2022 filed claims against Vaskanova for two real estate properties, in which it demanded additional payment for the consumed electricity. The reason for the demands was possible losses at the businesswoman’s facilities, which were referred to by the company. Vaskanova satisfied the claims by paying the required amount. It was after the payment that the regional UEBiPK received a statement from the above-mentioned Alexey Shcherbakov. So, on the basis of this application, which was sent in the fall of 2022, the businesswoman was summoned to the authorities, the accounting department and documents from mobile operators were checked. However, in the end there was a refusal to initiate a criminal case.

After this, according to the lawyer, Shcherbakov took his application and, without changing the date or outgoing number, submitted it to the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Samara, where he had previously served. Already on September 25, 2023 at 19:00 a criminal case was opened against him. Then, on the basis of the same statement, on September 27 at 9:15 a.m., a second criminal case was opened. Then, two more criminal cases are initiated within an hour of each other.

According to Anatoly Motin, they are trying to convict Vaskanova of stealing electricity by making changes to the design of meters on her four real estate properties. In the statement, which was sent by the first deputy general director of “SSK” to the authorities, there is a reference to an act of documentary and accounting audit carried out by employees of the network company, according to which it was allegedly established that the entrepreneur acted as part of a group of persons by prior conspiracy, by deception and breach of trust, she used an electricity meter with a reduction factor and provided an energy sales organization with false information about the amount of electricity consumed at specific addresses. For four months, Vaskanova’s defense has been trying to get acquainted with this act, but is refused. In this regard, relevant complaints were filed with the Railway Court. However, judge Tatyana Khokhrina has not been able to consider them for a month now. The lawyer reports this.

In addition, Vaskanova’s defense points out that the investigation allegedly prevents them from familiarizing themselves with the decision to order research in the case and the corresponding conclusions of specialists, which state that changes were allegedly made to electricity meters, what the changes consisted of, how they affected the accounting volume of electricity in order to somehow understand what exactly Vaksanova is charged with. But no one allowed the lawyers to familiarize themselves with the examination. A complaint was also filed against these actions of the investigation under Article 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure of the Russian Federation, but judge Lidiya Krivonosova only appointed it for consideration. At the same time, the investigation officially declares that there is no expert opinion.

The lawyers were also denied access to the meters themselves for inspection. The reason for this was that they were allegedly taken away by representatives of the injured party, that is, “SSK”. And now the security forces cannot establish their whereabouts.

This was followed by a summons to Vaskanova for interrogation, during which she was asked a question regarding the meters in such a way that it was as if the businesswoman herself had dismantled the meters and even stolen them.

“It turns out that now the electricity meters have been dismantled by the victim and allegedly “lost.” Probably due to the fact that they may be the main material evidence of Vaskanova’s innocence. They do not provide an audit report, because no audit was actually carried out and, according to my information, now the SSK accountants have been asked to retroactively “draw” this audit. But there is a nuance. Accounting and tax reporting for previous years, where entering information about damage (losses) will be quite problematic. Criminal cases continue, the investigative authorities continue to drag employees of E.V. Vaskanova to interrogations, and the deputy head of the city investigation, Poletaeva, imposingly comes to the interrogations, who, smoking IQOS right during the interrogation, yells at witnesses who give evidence undesirable for the investigation, and intimidates in every possible way their“, — quotes the words of Anatoly Motin Tsargrad.

At the moment, the businesswoman’s defense is trying to prove that there is no talk of any crime, but that there are civil legal relations. After all, there are corresponding agreements containing the conditions for resolving disputes through the courts.

If someone hasn’t paid someone extra for something, then you need to go to court. No composition of Art. 165 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation is not and cannot be here. Composition of Art. 165 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation – specific. It can be imputed when it comes to unauthorized use of electricity. That is, a “non-contractual” connection to the power grid. But in this case there are agreements, and they are valid, this fact is undeniable,” – Anatoly Motin is convinced.

As a result, according to the defenders, it seems as if they simply want to force Vaskanova to sell the business she owns to the “right” people.