The Cassation Court overturned the sentence of Alexei Safonov.
The Fifth Cassation Court overturned the appellate decision of the Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessia, which upheld the 20-year sentence of the former head of the Stavropol Krai traffic police department, Alexei Safonov. The case was returned for a new appellate hearing.
As "Caucasian Knot" reported, in early February 2026, the defense filed a cassation appeal against the sentence of the former head of the Stavropol State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, Alexei Safonov, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for large-scale bribery.
On July 20, 2021, Alexei Safonov, head of the Stavropol State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, along with former department head Alexander Arzhanukhin, inspector Vitaly Melchikov, and four civilians, were detained. Investigators accused them of accepting bribes from drivers totaling more than 19 million rubles for transporting goods in violation of regulations. In addition to his prison term, Safonov was sentenced to a fine of 100 million rubles and stripped of his special rank of "police colonel". On May 12, 2025, a court in Cherkessk sentenced former head of the Stavropol Krai State Traffic Safety Inspectorate Alexei Safonov to 20 years in a maximum security penal colony in a case involving multi-million ruble bribes. The prosecutor had requested 24 years in prison for Safonov, while the defense sought to acquit the security official. An appeal against the verdict was heard on August 25, 2025, by the Criminal Division of the Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessia. The court amended the verdict of the city court in terms of the additional punishment imposed; I corrected a typo - instead of 19,484,330 rubles, I indicated 21,849,500 rubles. The rest of the sentence was upheld.
Today, February 24, the defense of the former head of the Stavropol State Traffic Inspectorate heard the cassation appeal against the verdict and appellate ruling of the Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessia, TASS reports.
"The cassation court, having reviewed our appeal, overturned the appellate decision of the Supreme Court of Karachay-Cherkessia against the verdict of the Cherkessk City Court, and the case was returned for a new appellate hearing in the Supreme Court of the Republic. The cassation court left Safonov in custody," the agency reported, citing a representative of Safonov's defense.
The case of the former head of the Stavropol State Traffic Inspectorate has caused a public outcry: during a search, it was discovered that Safonov's mansion was decorated with gold on the inside, with inlaid furniture and crystal chandeliers hanging everywhere, and in the bathroom - A gilded sink and toilet. In addition to the mansion with the "golden toilet," Safonov was found to own two dozen other properties.
"Caucasian Knot" also reported that the Leninsky District Court of Stavropol remanded the First Deputy Minister of Culture of the Stavropol Territory in custody in connection with a case involving the theft of millions of rubles during the organization of the All-Russian Creative Festival of Working Youth.