A senior Russian Industry and Trade Ministry official overseeing drone development has been arrested and placed in pre-trial detention, Russian media reported Thursday.
Alla Polovchenya was arrested Wednesday, a ministry spokesperson told state news agency TASS, shortly after which Moscow’s Meshchansky District Court ordered her to be held in custody for two months as she awaits trial.
Polovchenya faces charges of large-scale embezzlement, which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
The Industry and Trade Ministry’s department of unmanned systems and robotics, where Polovchenya serves as deputy head, was established in early 2024 to coordinate civilian and defense procurement under a national drone initiative launched by the Russian federal government.
The case against Polovchenya centers on a criminal investigation into the company Transportation of the Future, which develops unmanned aerial systems, according to Kommersant and RBC.
