Russia’s Security Service uncovers $20m oil theft from Arctic military grouping

Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has uncovered a scam in the west Siberian Novosibirsk Region, which defrauded the Arctic military grouping of diesel fuel worth 1 billion rubles ($20 million), the FSB’s regional branch said on Thursday.

The scam, which was uncovered jointly with the Novosibirsk interior department, was devised by two deputy directors of an oil depot in the region, the FSB said.

"Two deputy directors used their official position to falsify documents of the organization’s economic activity and resell over 14,000 tons of diesel fuel kept at the oil depot to third parties. The fuel was intended for supplies to the Russian Armed Forces, in particular, the military grouping in the Arctic," the FSB’s Novosibirsk branch said, without specifying the oil depot.

A criminal case into the large-scale theft has been opened and the suspects have been arrested. If convicted, they face up to 10 years in prison.