MOSCOW, March 22 (RAPSI) – A court in Russia’s Amur region has found CEO of the Vostochny Cosmodrome construction contractor Stroyindustriya-S, Sergei Terentyev, guilty of embezzlement and sentenced him to 11 years in penal colony, RIA Novosti reported on Tuesday.

Terentyev was also found guilty of delaying salaries for his employees over two months. According to the court reports, he pleaded guilty to all charges.

Terentyev was ordered to pay a 100,000 ruble ($1,400) fine.

This is one of several criminal cases related to embezzlement at the Vostochny Cosmodrome.

Stroyindustriya-S became the first construction company against which a criminal case was opened. Its CEO, Sergei Terentyev, was detained in April, 2015 over salary delays. Investigators claim that Terentyev was aware that the company had the necessary funds but intentionally did not pay the staff. The debt was estimated to have exceeded 14 million rubles ($260,000).

Investigators found that Terentyev, the director of the contracting company that is building the Vostochny Cosmodrome, was aware that the company had the necessary funds but intentionally did not pay the staff for January, February and the first half of March 2015.

Earlier reports indicate that on April 4, 26 construction workers at Russia’s new space rocket launch site (a large project that is behind schedule) went on a hunger strike. Soon after, Yury Volkodav, acting director of Dalspetsstroy, the company in charge of the Vostochny spaceport construction, promised that the arrears would be paid by April 10.

According to investigators, ex-CEO of Dalspetsstroy, Yuriy Khrizman, his son Mikhail and Viktor Chudov, Chairman of the Khabarovsk Territory Duma, embezzled about 106 million rubles ($1.6 million) belonging to the company. However, one criminal episode was uncovered within the investigation into the case over alleged embezzlement at Vostochny Cosmodrome.

Dalspetsstroy has repeatedly reported that the project was behind schedule at some sites but promised to catch up.

Yuriy Khrisman was fired in 2013 after it was revealed that the government had not received complete information about the delays.

The construction of the space center, due to become Russia's main launch site, began in 2012. The facility is planned to be completed in 2016. The first manned mission is scheduled for 2018.