Mamedov pleaded guilty

      The hearing began with questioning of Ruslan Mamedov by the defense — the defendant fully admitted his guilt and gave detailed accounts of each episode alleged against him by the investigation, about which the prosecutor had previously questioned witnesses.

      During questioning Mamedov said that part of the money received from refunds on purchases he passed to his deputy Ilya Pauzin, and with the remainder he bought various interior items, which are now in the museum room of the Vitberg house where the Tourism Development Center is located. Asked why he spent the money on these items, the defendant explained that he was creating a museum room there. “Some I bought second‑hand, others from marketplaces,” the former head of the Tourism Development Center specified.

      Recall that very recently Mamedov’s deputy Ilya Pauzin was sentenced. According to Pauzin, he did not receive a single kopeck from Mamedov. The latter, in turn, said the opposite: that the money left over from contracts they split with Pauzin “fifty‑fifty.” When asked why Pauzin denied receiving any money during his testimony, Mamedov answered: “Apparently, it suits him for his position.”

      The defendant was also asked about the 300,000 rubles that entrepreneur Andrey Dmitriev allegedly gave him for the improvement of Apollo Park. As the former head of the Tourism Development Center explained, Dmitriev gave him 300,000 rubles at the end of 2023. According to Mamedov, the money could not be spent in time then, so he decided to keep it. Later the defendant returned the money to the entrepreneur in full, and additionally gave 100,000 rubles for a lawyer. Incidentally, Dmitriev originally handed the money to Mamedov in a rather unusual way — in the pages of a book. A witness who handed the package with the “gift” from the entrepreneur to Mamedov described this in more detail. You can read about it here.

      Toward the end of the hearing Ruslan Mamedov admitted that at the time of the thefts he understood that his actions were unlawful.

      In addition, the defense read out character references and letters of appreciation received by Mamedov over the years. The defendant followed the proceedings closely and several times asked his lawyer to mention the most significant certificates of merit. The defense also provided receipts confirming that Mamedov had returned all the money to the Tourism Development Center as early as 2023.

      Recall that the former director of the Tourism Development Center, Ruslan Mamedov, is accused under Part 3 of Article 160 and Part 3 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.