A resident of Kabardino-Balkaria has been convicted in a multi-million dollar theft case involving the Elbrus mountain

A court sentenced a Kavkaz.RF employee to 2.5 years in prison, finding him guilty of embezzling more than 81 million rubles from the sale of ski passes at the Elbrus resort.

As reported by the " Caucasian Knot ," a resident of Kabardino-Balkaria and a former employee of JSC Kavkaz.RF was charged with embezzling millions of rubles from the sale of ski passes at the Elbrus resort. His case was sent to court in June 2024 .

A former employee of JSC Kavkaz.RF was found guilty of theft (Article 160 of the Russian Criminal Code) and causing damage by deception (Article 165 of the Russian Criminal Code), the North Caucasus Federal District Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported today.

"He was sentenced to two years and six months imprisonment in a general regime penal colony," the publication states.

The court concluded that the defendant, who worked as a technical support specialist for the Elbrus resort's payment and access system, "stole part of the proceeds from the sale of cable car passes."

Damages in the amount of more than 81 million rubles were recovered from the convicted person.

"The property damage in the amount of over 81 million rubles was recovered from the convicted person in full," the agency reported.

As a reminder, Elbrus is a winter resort in Kabardino-Balkaria, popular among alpine skiers, freeriders, snowboarders, and other extreme sports enthusiasts.

After many countries closed their borders due to the coronavirus pandemic, Russian tourists turned more attention to resorts within the country, particularly in the North Caucasus. Elbrus became one of the most popular ski resorts. However, vacationers complained about long lines for ski lifts and traffic jams .