Chief architect of Sochi suspected of abuse of power

In Sochi, Oleg Sheveiko, Director of the Department of Architecture, Urban Planning and Redevelopment of the city administration, became a defendant in two criminal cases, related to the issuance of construction permits in the area of international hospitality.

On September 21, two criminal cases were instituted against Oleg Sheveiko under Part 1 of Article 286 (abuse of power) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Today, the cases were combined in a single proceeding.

According to investigators, in March 2011, the Chief Architect of Sochi signed a permit to the LLC (Limited Liability Company) "Sochi South Beach" for construction of a multi-purpose multi-apartment complex on a land plot within the area of the international hospitality and areas, adjacent to the Olympic facilities. The law prohibits construction of buildings with height of more than 17 meters in the area, and the permit had been issued for the construction of buildings with height more than 74 meters. At present, the construction of the building is under completion.

However, the investigators revealed that the permit had been issued without the urban plan of the land plot, made in the prescribed manner, and without the positive conclusion of the ecological review of the project documentation.

In March 2012, Oleg Sheveiko issued a permit for construction in the same area of the international hospitality of a hotel with height of about 33 meters without evidence of technical specifications of the installment of the facility into utility networks and without the conclusion of the state ecological review of the project documentation. The works on the construction of the building are at the early stages.

Meanwhile, according to the investigators, during the period from January 2013 till July 2014, construction works in the indicated area are completely forbidden.

Later, the above facts were revealed by prosecutors and passed to the bodies of the Investigatory Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF). At present, the ICRF considers the question of choosing a pre-trial restriction measure to the suspect, and the criminal investigation is underway. This was reported by the statement on the website of the Investigatory Committee of the Russian Federation in the Krasnodar Territory.