Four real estate agents from Ingushetia, suspected of fraud, detained in Moscow

Policemen detained four top-ranking employees of capital real estate companies suspected of embezzlement of more than one billion roubles, which had been handed out on forged documents to residents of Ingushetia.

According to a press officer of the press service of the Main Department of Economic Security (MDES) of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), the law enforcement agents "suppressed the activity of the organized grouping, which members were suspected of systematic embezzlement of budget funds allocated for housing rehabilitation of people affected by disasters in 2006-2009 in Ingushetia."

According to investigators, "managers and employees of several real estate companies sold in Moscow more than one hundred housing certificates amounting to more than one billion roubles handed out on forged documents to residents of Ingushetia to replace lost housing."

According to the MIA, the participants of the organized grouping fraudulently received housing certificates and powers of attorney from citizens and, in some cases, paid no more than 100 thousand roubles in compensation. "These documents were used to affect purchase and sale of apartments in Moscow to get the budget funds. The suspects cashed and pocketed the funds transferred by the Ministry of Finance of Moscow," the "Newsru.com" quotes an officer of the MDES as saying.

A criminal case was instituted under Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (fraud on a large scale). The detainees were brought to the city of Pyatigorsk, where the question on their arrest would be decided, the "Interfax" reports.

The position of the detainees or their lawyers is still unavailable.