SENTENCE PASSED UPON THIEVES OF SARATOVNEFTEGAZ CRUDE
The District Court of Engels convicted crime members, sentenced different terms and substantial fines. The lawbreakers were stealing oil products from pipeline of RussNeft subsidiary Saratovneftegaz.
A number of illegal tie-ins into the oil pipeline from NSP-22 oil-gathering unit to Stepnovskye Gas Oil Separation Plant were detected by Saratovneftegaz security service. The company requested General Administration for Economic Security and Combatting the Corruption of Saratov region to take part in the investigation. The cooperative actions included identification of hydrocarbons thieves, tracking suspicious vehicles circulating in the area and registration of illegal tie-ins. The pipeline was under the 24/7 online surveillance till the mid-December. It was necessary to collect sufficient evidence of the criminal acts.
The General Administration of Internal Affairs of Saratov region in cooperation with Saratovneftegaz security arrested 13 crime members on 15 December 2014. The investigation and the trial had taken almost two years in which the company employees continuously appeared in the criminal case as experts and witnesses. They gathered, prepared and issued required documents, exanimating defendants’ statements at the scene of the crime in conjunction with physical evidences and other investigative actions.
As it turned out, this organized criminal group inflicted financial damage on the company in amount of 900 000 RUB and stole approximately 50 tons of oil.
The court convicted the defendants of a covert collective large-scale theft of oil and damaging the pipeline as well as of laundering money or other property obtained through the committed crime. Besides, the person, who bought and sold the stolen oil, was identified. He was brought charges of Criminal Code Article 175 Part 2 Par. “b”.
The sentence of Engels district court was surprisingly severe. One of the lawbreakers got a year and a half in an open prison, three of them got from 1.6 to 3 years and other seven – from 6 to10 years in jail. Two partners in crime have to pay a substantial fine. Furthermore, according to the court sentence, all the numerous technical equipment of the criminal group was confiscated as compensation along with three tractor units (One Renault and two KAMAZ) and one Niva SUV.