A court in Nalchik convicted a Russian Defense Ministry lieutenant of accepting a large bribe.

Lieutenant Kristina Gorbunova was sentenced in Kabardino-Balkaria to three years for accepting a bribe of one and a half million rubles. According to investigators, she accepted the bribe to exempt a serviceman from participating in combat.

According to the official version, in December 2023, that is, during the period of mobilization and martial law, Gorbunova personally received an especially large bribe of 1.5 million rubles from a serviceman under her command for general patronage in the service.

The patronage consisted of exempting the serviceman from participating in combat and retaining him during his military service in the military unit, which was within her official duties, the Nalchik Garrison Military Court reported on its VKontakte page.

It is noted that the person in question is a lieutenant in the Russian Ministry of Defense. In sentencing, the court took into account that the woman had been awarded military ranks ahead of schedule for her exemplary performance of assault missions. She also holds state awards—the Order of Courage, the Medal for Bravery, and the Medal for Courage, 2nd Class, which she received during a special military operation.

Taking this into account, the court deemed it appropriate to sentence Gorbunova to a prison sentence significantly lower than the minimum sentence for bribery 1 for three years in a general regime penal colony, not to strip her of her military rank or state awards, and not to impose any other additional penalties, the court reports.

Gorbunova's name was not mentioned in the court press service's publication. According to the case file on the court's website, the defendant is Kristina Gorbunova. The case was received by the court on November 17, and she was sentenced on November 27.

As reported by "Kavkazsky Uzel," a court in Nalchik sentenced an officer to prison for fictitious registration of awards. Lieutenant Colonel Nurgaleev was sentenced to three years in prison for receiving two medals and the 400,000 rubles due to them.