MOSCOW, March 2 (RAPSI, Lyudmila Klenko) – The Basmanny District Court of Moscow has extended house arrest of former head of Russia’s Komi Republic Vladimir Torlopov, charged with creating an organized criminal group and large-scale fraud, until June 6, RAPSI learnt in the court on Thursday.

Investigation term in this case was extended until July 18.

Torlopov was a head of the Komi Republic in 2001-2010 and a senator of Russia’s Federation Council in 2010-2016. He is charged with organizing a criminal group conspiring with Vyacheslav Gaizer, another former head of Russia’s Komi Republic who was holding the office in 2010-2015.

According to investigators, damage to the government from Torlopov’s actions is estimated at 2.5 billion rubles ($39.6 million).

Investigator said earlier that Torlopov had pleaded guilty.

Nineteen people are defendants in the large corruption case against Gaizer, including his deputy Alexey Chernov, Igor Kovzel, Chairman of the Republican State Council, and Konstantin Romadanov, Deputy Chairman of the Komi government. This August one of the people related to the case, Anton Faerstein, died in detention.

Gaizer was charged in relation to two counts of bribery and one count of fraud. Earlier, various media have reported that Gaizer made a deal with investigators, but his lawyer does not confirm this information.

Earlier, the Investigative Committee reported about thwarting the activity of a criminal group led by the head of the Republic of Komi, Vyacheslav Gaizer.

Gaizer pleads not guilty. Several high-ranking officials have been arrested in the fraud and organized crime case, as well as several business people that the Investigative Committee called “finance technologists.”

During 80 searches in Komi, St. Petersburg and Moscow, the Investigative Committee and the Federal Security Service confiscated over 60 kg of jewelry, 150 watches worth $30,000 to $1 million each, over 50 stamps and seals from offshore corporations, and financial documents legalizing over 1 billion rubles ($14 mln) in stolen money transferred to the offshore zone.

Investigators have also opened a criminal case on money laundering against Gaizer.

On September 30, 2015, President Vladimir Putin signed a decree to relieve Gaizer of his duties because of loss of trust.