The Moscow Meshchansky Court decided to release the former Deputy Minister of Energy of Russia, Anatoly Tikhonov, after more than three years of detention. Tikhonov, who held a high position in the ministry, was found guilty of embezzling more than 600 million rubles allocated for the development of the Ministry of Energy information system. Despite the seriousness of the charges, the court ordered his release given the time spent in pre-trial detention since his arrest in 2020.

The court sentenced Tikhonov to imprisonment for a period of five years and four months, but released him in the courtroom, citing the fact that the time spent in the pre-trial detention center was counted towards the term of the sentence. In addition to imprisonment, the former deputy minister is required to pay a fine of 500 million rubles and reimburse the Ministry of Energy 272 million rubles for damages.

This case caused a wide public outcry, since it concerns a high-ranking official and a large amount of stolen funds, which became one of the most striking examples of corruption in government agencies.