MOSCOW, August 16 (RAPSI, Lyudmila Klenko) – The Moscow’s Zamoskvoretsky District Court has set preliminary hearings in a criminal case against the former head of Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) Alexander Reimer, who stands charged with embezzlement, for August 23, RAPSI learned from the court’s press-service on Tuesday.

Hearings are to be conducted behind closed doors. Reimer’s detention has been extended until August 29.

On Monday, the criminal case against Reimer and his alleged accomplices reached the court.

Charges have been brought against Reimer, his former deputy Nikolai Krivolapov, director of FSIN’s Information and Technical Support Center Viktor Opredelyonov. They are charged, depending of their role, with abuse of office and embezzlement committed through abuse of office. Krivolapov is additionally charged with illegal possession of ammunition.

On June 30, the Zamoskvoretsky District Court of Moscow sentenced businessman Nikolai Martynov to 3 years and 8 months in prison in relation to this case.

Criminal case against Martynov was reviewed separately as he fully admitted his guilt in large-scale embezzlement in 2010-2012 over the purchase of ankle bracelets for the Federal Penitentiary System. Martynov cooperated with investigators and announced that he is going to compensate the government with delivery of 7,000 new ankle bracelets. Businessman is a head of “NPF Meta” company that was supplying bracelets for prison inmates.

FSIN has asked the court to recover about 3 billion rubles (about $42.8 million) from Alexander Reimer in relation to this case.

In May of 2015, the court seized 15 million rubles ($183,300) in assets belonging to Reimer.

Probe into the case was opened after two employees of the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) were detained on suspicion of extorting $2.6 million from a businessman in connection with the purchase of ankle bracelets.

After Reimer resigned from FSIN in 2012, a 10 billion ruble ($122 mln) fraud was uncovered at the service. Reimer has denied his guilt. Reimer also has been charged with abuse of office.

Alexander Reimer, 58, was chief of the Interior Ministry Department in the Samara Region from April 2006 to 2009. In August 2009, he was appointed FSIN director and in 2010 promoted to the rank of Colonel-General of the Interior. He was dismissed from FSIN on June 26, 2012.