MOSCOW, August 4 (RAPSI, Alexei Afonsky) - The Moscow District Military Court on Tuesday sentenced former colonel of the Federal Security Service (FSB), Andrei Leletko, to 18 years in jail for plotting murder of prominent aircraft engineer and businessman, Idris Faizullin, RAPSI reports from the court.

The jury earlier found Leletko guilty of fraud and organizing a murder but acquitted him of attempted assault. Prosecutors asked the court to sentence Leletko, to 20 years in jail and fine him 1 million rubles ($16,000).

Investigators found that Leletko and another defendant, Igor Ugarov, organized Faizullin’s murder in 2011 in order to take possession of his property in Zhukovsky, Moscow Region. A local realtor and a businessman with criminal connections, who apparently hired the actual perpetrators, as well as Faizullin’s assistant and his girlfriend were also involved in the crime.

The first perpetrator threw hydrochloric acid into the businessman’s face, for 90,000 rubles ($1, 440). His accomplices expected that while Faizullin was in hospital they would sell his property.

However, the businessman was released from hospital too quickly, and the plotters hired a killer who shot Faizullin on March 11, 2011.

The property was transferred to the ownership of Faizullin’s assistant’s girlfriend. In May 2014, the media reported that the assistant was sentenced to 14 years behind bars.
Ugarov was fully acquitted by the jury.