Court in Russia orders general to be placed under house arrest due to fraud allegations

A Moscow court has ruled to place Maj. Gen. Ivan Popov under house arrest until at least October 11. This decision marks a reversal from a few weeks prior when the court had denied releasing Popov from custody. Popov, the former commander of the 58th Guards Combined Arms Army, was arrested in May alongside other high-ranking military officials including ex-Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, a close colleague of the then Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. While some officials faced bribery charges, Popov was accused of large-scale fraud.

The dismissal of Shoigu as defense minister on May 12 by President Vladimir Putin, who appointed him as the national security council secretary, followed criticisms of Russia’s military performance in Ukraine. Popov’s removal came shortly after whistleblower Yevgeny Prigozhin led a failed mutiny in June 2023 to demand the firing of Shoigu and Gen. Valery Gerasimov, the military chief of staff. Popov alleged that his dismissal was a betrayal to Russian troops in Ukraine after he had reported issues faced by his forces to the Russian military command.

Popov had been in detention since late May, with his lawyers initially requesting his release from custody, which was denied. Despite an uncommon move in the Russian justice system, authorities submitted a petition for his house arrest, which was approved by the 235th Garrison Military Court on Monday. The reasons behind the court’s change in decision regarding Popov’s pretrial detention remain unclear.