The developer suspected of fraud in Sochi signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense of Russia.

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Muscovite Natalia Korobkova lost a large sum of money by investing it in real estate in Sochi. The developer, suspected of fraud, signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense of Russia, which led to the investigation being suspended. The prosecutor's office acknowledged that the investigator's decision was unfounded.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", Moscow resident Natalia Korobkova complained in June that in 2021 she signed an investment agreement for the construction of a residential building, and in 2022 - an agreement to terminate this contract, but her money was never returned.

Moscow resident Natalia Korobkova, who lost more than 1.3 million rubles while trying to invest in real estate in Sochi, achieved the cancellation of the decision to suspend the criminal case against the Sochi developer.

On October 3, Korobkova told a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" that the prosecutor's office of the Central District of Sochi reviewed her appeal and acknowledged the victim's arguments about violations of deadlines and improper investigation of the criminal case of large-scale fraud (part 4 of article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). A copy of the response from the prosecutor's office is available to "Caucasian Knot".

I was brought to the office on Tavricheskaya Street, where they showed beautiful presentations and graphs on a projector.

According to Korobkova, in December 2021, she saw an advertisement about investing in the reconstruction of the Sea Breeze hotel on Prosveshcheniya Street in the Adler district. "I was brought to the office on Tavricheskaya Street, where they showed beautiful presentations and graphs on a projector. They offered to invest 2,520,000 rubles in 9 square meters in a nearly finished property. I handed over 2.45 million rubles in cash at the central office <...> under a receipt and contract. They promised that the first sales would begin in June 2022 and I would receive my money with profit," she said.

Payments did not start on the promised date. According to the victim, the developers referred to "lawsuits with the administration" and "the difficult situation in the country." Later, from chats with other buyers, Korobkova learned that the Sea Breeze property was recognized as an unauthorized construction and was subject to demolition.

I was offered replacements with other apartments and cars, but only with my huge additional payment.

In December 2022, an agreement to terminate the investment contract was signed between Korobkova and the developer's partner. She was promised a refund if she did not contact law enforcement. "With great difficulty, constant calls, and pleas, I managed to get back only part of the amount - 1,110,000 rubles. Payments came in small parts, and in September 2025, I was simply sent 10,000 rubles 'as a mockery.' The remaining debt exceeds 1.39 million rubles. I was offered replacements with other apartments and cars, but only with my huge additional payment. And upon checking the documents, I found out that all their properties are problematic and are being demolished, which they could not have been unaware of, but they continued to lure people with false advertising and extort money supposedly for investing in real estate <...> As it turns out from the chats, there are hundreds of us. Some people continue to believe and wait for the courts to legalize unauthorized properties in Sochi, and they will start bringing dividends," the victim said.

According to Korobkova, she also managed to establish through her own investigation that the developers' assets were being transferred to third parties. Currently, dozens of civil lawsuits have been filed against the developer and his partners in the district courts of Sochi, which have been ongoing for several years, while they continue to attract people.

Later, 14 similar criminal cases from other victims were combined into one proceeding with it.

In the response from the acting deputy prosecutor of the Central District of Sochi, E. Boyko, which Korobkova received, it is stated that in February of this year, a criminal case No. 12601030067000398 was initiated against the developer under part 4 of article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (large-scale fraud committed by an organized group or resulting in deprivation of a citizen's right to housing - note from "Caucasian Knot"), later 14 similar criminal cases from other victims were combined into one proceeding with it.

However, on July 2 of this year, the investigator suspended the preliminary investigation in the case "on the basis of paragraph 3.1 of part 1 of article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, due to the fact that the suspect <...> signed a contract for military service in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation during mobilization or wartime."

Korobkova filed a complaint with the prosecutor's office, indicating that the signing of the contract became a way for the suspect to evade criminal and material liability. On August 3, the prosecutor's office of the Central District of Sochi canceled the investigator's ruling as illegal and sent the materials for additional investigation. According to the response from the acting deputy prosecutor of the district, E. Boyko, "the arguments about improper investigation of the criminal case and violation of reasonable time limits for criminal proceedings are justified, and therefore the district prosecutor's office has taken responsive measures." "A requirement was submitted to the head of the investigative department in accordance with paragraph 3 of part 2 of article 37 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation, which was satisfied," the deputy prosecutor added.

Lawyer Albert Zadikyan, commenting on the situation, told a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" that the situation in which Korobkova and other victims find themselves vividly illustrates a systemic problem of law enforcement over the past two years, arising at the intersection of criminal procedural legislation and military service norms, where responsibility for serious crimes such as large-scale fraud is exchanged for signing a contract.

In this case, the prosecutor's office rightly pointed out violations of the requirements for reasonable time limits for proceedings.

"Paragraph 3.1 of part 1 of article 208 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation indeed allows for the suspension of investigative actions if the suspect or accused signs a contract with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. However, investigative bodies often do this formally, without proper verification of circumstances, conducting urgent investigative actions, such as imposing a freeze on assets, interrogating accomplices, conducting expert examinations. In this case, the prosecutor's office rightly pointed out violations of the requirements for reasonable time limits for proceedings (article 6.1 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation) and canceled the illegal ruling," the lawyer noted.

Zadikyan also pointed out problems with the qualification of the case and complicity in the case. "The suspension of the case against one of the defendants due to the contract should not block the investigation against other individuals, nor does it prevent the separation of the criminal case or the arrest of assets registered to third parties," he noted.

According to him, there are also civil law risks for the victims. "Partial refunds from the developers in 'small payments' is a classic defense tactic used by fraudsters to shift criminal prosecution into the realm of civil law relations. We see from the prosecutor's response that there are already 14 combined cases, which directly indicates systemic deception and intent to seize someone else's property," Zadikyan stated.

This requires the complicity of officials of various ranks and positions.

At the same time, he noted that, as far as he knows, the fraudulent scheme has been put on stream and law enforcement agencies do not block what is happening, although it is their duty to impose a ban on the dissemination of knowingly illegal advertising aimed at seizing citizens' funds. In his opinion, three accomplices alone cannot carry out such complex schemes. "This requires the complicity of officials of various ranks and positions <...> If people report the actions of a group of accomplices to all these instances and no one from law enforcement reacts for a long time, it means we are talking about an organized criminal group operating in Sochi," the lawyer stated.

He assesses the prosecutor's response as a form letter, as "there is no specificity in the form of instructions to the police to impose freezes on the fraudsters' assets, to ban advertising of criminal objects, to inform the public through the media."

The lawyer advises all victims of the actions of these individuals to seek through supervisory authorities and the court under article 125 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Russian Federation not only the activation of the investigation into the main case but also the immediate imposition of freezes on the property and land plots of the defendants and those affiliated with them within the framework of a civil claim in the criminal process, otherwise, even with a guilty verdict, it will be impossible to recover damages, which is an established practice in Sochi.

Natalia Korobkova intends not only to continue fighting for her money but also to unite all victims who have already contacted the police or are still considering doing so. "There are hundreds of victims in Sochi. I see this from the chat we created where we all communicate," she emphasized, noting that law enforcement is somehow not interested in all the victims. "They are trying to break us into small groups or individual applicants," she added.

Earlier, "Caucasian Knot" reported that, as of 2023, the authorities of the Krasnodar Territory counted 215 unauthorized constructions in the region, which were included in the relevant register, more than half of which are located in Sochi.

Advice for those who have become victims of fraud in shared construction or want to protect themselves from similar problems has been compiled by "Caucasian Knot" in the reference "Shareholders: lawyers advise how to avoid fraud".

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