Russian police detained a resident of the Moscow region who offered a businessman the chance to become the head of the Irkutsk region in Siberia for $5 million, the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement on Friday.
“The suspect offered to sell senior government posts to interested parties, such as the post of deputy governor of St. Petersburg’s housing department for 10 million euros ($13.5 million) and the post of governor of the Krasnodar Territory [in southern Russia] for 30 million euros ($40 million),” the statement said.
The conman claimed that according to his “senior connections” all these posts should become vacant in the near future.
The man was detained in a central Moscow office while taking a bribe, for which he promised the businessman the Irkutsk governor’s post.
Police opened a criminal case on large-scale fraud. The conman can face up to ten years in prison if convicted.