Zolotaryov's arrest continues corruption-fighting trend in Northern Caucasus

The criminal prosecution of Aleksander Zolotaryov, deputy chairman of the government of the Stavropol Territory, under the bribery case is another episode in the fight against corruption in Northern Caucasus by the model of cadre cleansings in Dagestan, Anton Chablin, a political analyst, believes.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Alexander Zolotaryov was detained on March 12, and on March 14, he was arrested for two months on suspicion of taking bribes worth 63 million roubles.

The detention of Alexander Zolotaryov testifies to "a clear strengthening of law enforcers both in the Stavropol Territory and in Northern Caucasus as a whole," said Anton Chablin, a political analyst and an expert at the Centre for Applied Researches and Programmes (CARP).

Mr Chablin has recalled that recently, in the Stavropol Territory, a number of high-ranking law enforcers have been replaced. "Thus, last year, Oleg Usov was appointed a new head of the FSB branch; and this January, Alexei Kazakov became a new head of the "Rosgvardia" (Russian National Guard) territorial department," the expert has noted.

"You shouldn't forget that earlier General Usov worked in Dagestan; and it is with him that the most resonant criminal cases are connected against the entire republic's ruling elite, starting from Prime Minister Abdusamad Gamidov to the brother of ex-head Radjab Abdulatipov. I think the 'Dagestani scenario' in Zolotaryov's detention is realized in the Stavropol Territory," Anton Chablin has concluded.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 15, 2021 at 05:46 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.