On October 13, 2026, the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Court heard the appeals in the criminal case of the former head of the Nizhny Novgorod administration Oleg Kondrashov and upheld the trial court's verdict as a whole, adjusting it with respect to the additional punishment.[1]

The trial court verdict

In April 2026, the Moskovsky District Court of Nizhny Novgorod found Kondrashov guilty in absentia of accepting a bribe on an especially large scale. According to the investigation, in 2012–2013 he and his subordinates received 17 million rubles from the businessman Mamuka Losaberidze in exchange for assistance in allocating a land plot for the construction of a commercial crematorium. The court sentenced him to 10 years' imprisonment in a strict-regime penal colony and a fine of 340 million rubles — twenty times the amount of the bribe. In addition, Kondrashov was barred for 10 years from holding positions involving the exercise of governmental authority or the performance of organizational, administrative, and managerial functions.[1]

Consideration of the appeals

Both sides challenged the verdict: the defense sought its complete reversal, while the prosecutor's office sought a harsher sentence with regard to the confiscation of property.[1] The Regional Court granted the state prosecutor's appeal and denied the lawyers' appeals.[1]

As a result of the review, the ban on holding positions in state and municipal institutions was removed from the additional punishment.[1][2] The question of confiscating the 17 million rubles received as a bribe was sent back to the trial court for a new hearing.[2] In all other respects — 10 years in a strict-regime penal colony and a fine of 340 million rubles — the verdict was left unchanged. The appellate ruling took effect upon its announcement.[1]

The convicted man's whereabouts

At the time the appellate ruling was issued, Kondrashov was living in the United States with his family; he has been placed on an international wanted list.[1] The verdict was handed down in absentia.

Sources

  1. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Court Upholds Sentence for Former City Manager Oleg Kondrashov Nizhny Novgorod News
  2. Open Nizhny — In Nizhny Novgorod, Regional Court Amends Verdict in Oleg Kondrashov Case