The mayor of Krymsk has been arrested in connection with a land fraud case.

A court in Krasnodar ordered pretrial detention for Krymsk Mayor Yanis Budagov until February 18, 2026. Budagov pleaded not guilty.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," Krymsk Mayor Yanis Budagov, previously detained, has been charged with abuse of power in transferring a land plot to a local resident.

The Pervomaisky District Court of Krasnodar granted the investigators' motion and ordered pretrial detention for Yanis Budagov, accused of abuse of office. "The motion is granted and the pretrial detention measure is ordered until February 18 inclusive," TASS quotes the judge as saying.

The defendant's defense declined to comment when journalists asked about appealing the court's decision, RIA Novosti reports.

Investigators believe Budagov may flee to Armenia. The prosecutor's office supported the investigators' motion to arrest the defendant. Budagov's defense stated that his arrest during the investigation is unfounded. His lawyer stated that Budagov knew about the investigation and did not interfere with the searches, and that his home was searched.

Budagov, however, did not admit guilt. He stated in court that he believed he acted lawfully in the land plot sale. "I acted in accordance with the law. According to the order of the Ministry of Economic Development, the documents required for signing the purchase and sale agreement are clearly and precisely stated, including an extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate. The extract from the Unified State Register of Real Estate states: 'land of populated areas for agricultural use.' In no way was it stated that the land of populated areas was for residential development," Budagov stated in court.

Budagov's defense argued that the initiation of the case was illegal due to the fact that the Krasnodar Krai Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia is investigating a criminal case under Part 4 of Article 107 of the Criminal Code regarding the theft of the disputed land plot from the administration of the Krymskoye urban settlement. In May, a certain citizen named Lukyanov was charged under Article 159 of the Russian Criminal Code (fraud), alleging that the official was misled.

"He is accused of fraud, that is, the acquisition of property rights by deception, committed by a group of individuals acting in concert on an especially large scale by concluding an agreement with the head of the administration of the Krymsk urban settlement, whom he misled. Under these circumstances, we believe that initiating a criminal case against Budagov is illegal," stated Budagov's lawyer.

According to Kommersant, the criminal prosecution of the Krymsk mayor is connected to the case of the former head of the Krymsk district, Sergei Les, who was arrested on October 11 during an investigation into abuse of office. 100 million rubles and approximately 10 kg of gold were seized from the municipal head during his arrest. On December 12, following a lawsuit filed by the prosecutor's office, Sergei Les's property was seized by the Russian Federation due to the official's violation of anti-corruption regulations.