As the construction of the Olympic facilities in Sochi draws to a close, the facts of all sorts of frauds accompanying the construction of sports facilities and infrastructure are being revealed. This is not only about the unreasonable overstatement of the cost of construction work, which was mentioned by Russian President Vladimir Putin, but also about the banal theft of the budget.
Law enforcement reports refer to the investigation of abuses in the construction of facilities intended for the 2014 Sochi Olympics. For example, a criminal case was initiated on the fact of an attempt to steal 8 billion rubles from the budget allocated for the construction of sports infrastructure. The press center of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation reported that we are talking about fraudulent actions at the stage of preparatory work, committed by unreasonably overstating the construction cost indicated in the estimate.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, one of the facts reflected in the criminal case relates to the construction of a bobsleigh track. The leaders of the NGO Mostovik are suspected of overestimating the estimated cost, whose actions in the event of the completion of the financial combination could cause damage to the budget in the amount of more than 2 billion rubles.
Another criminal episode is associated with the construction of the central Sochi stadium. Here we are talking about an attempt on fraud, expressed in the misappropriation of funds of the SC "Olympstroy" in the amount of more than 5 billion rubles. The attackers tried to carry out their criminal actions at the stage of design work and the conclusion of a work contract. In general, four Olympic facilities under construction came to the attention of law enforcement agencies.
Also, a source in the government reports that criminal cases against a number of persons involved in fraud were initiated directly by the management of the State Corporation Olympstroy. Meanwhile, Olympstroy itself has not yet confirmed this information, admitting only the fact that the company was visited by auditors. According to the representative of the SC Olympstroy, the results of the audit by the Accounts Chamber specialists confirmed the legality of the actions of the corporation's management in the construction of facilities for the future Olympics.
