The Qualification Board of Judges of the Samara Region has cancelled the resignation of Anna Bondarenko, a judge at the Industrial District Court. This decision has been published on the agency’s website.
This is reported Russian elephant
The report states that the resignation of Anna Ivanovna Bondarenko, a judge at the Industrial District Court of Samara Region, has been cancelled based on clauses 5 and 6 of Article 15 of the Law of the Russian Federation of June 26, 1992 No. 3132-1 “On the Status of Judges in the Russian Federation.”
In April, the Soviet District Court of Samara found Anna Bondarenko guilty of attempting fraud in her official capacity (part 3 of article 30; part 3 of article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). She was sentenced to two years and ten months in prison and a fine of 60 thousand rubles. The execution of the punishment has been postponed until her minor child turns 14. The court’s verdict is not yet final. The state prosecutor initially requested four years in prison and a fine of 200,000 rubles.
In July, the Samara Regional Court rejected Anna Bondarenko’s appeal against the verdict and upheld the decision of the first trial. Subsequently, in late August, she appealed to the Sixth Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction. Her lawyer, Svetlana Solomakhina, explained that the cassation appeal is still under review.
Based on the investigation and court findings, in 2020, Anna Bondarenko’s acquaintance, Nikolai Belousov, requested a fee from her to influence a lighter sentence in the fraud case of tax inspector Olga Efimova. The judge requested 400,000 rubles for this. However, another judge, Svetlana Afanasyeva, was actually responsible for the case, and Anna Bondarenko did not have the authority to influence the verdict, according to investigators. Following the agreement on the bribe, Olga Efimova reported the forthcoming violation to the regional FSB. In October 2020, as part of an undercover operation, Ms. Efimova transferred money to Nikolai Belousov, after which both were apprehended by law enforcement. Later, in the building of the Industrial District Court, Nikolai Belousov handed the illicit payment to Anna Bondarenko. The judge was detained upon leaving the building. In 2021, Olga Efimova was found guilty of a crime and was given a suspended sentence.
Dmitry Gorbunov, a partner at Rustam Kurmaev & Partners, points out that cancelling a judge's resignation is a way of holding them accountable. It means they can't become a retired judge with all the associated benefits and privileges provided by law, such as a monthly pension for judges with over 20 years of experience. Judges generally resign due to health issues, age, or transfer to another position. However, if circumstances arise that are incompatible with the esteemed status of a judge or retired judge, such as a valid conviction, their resignation may be terminated.
Dmitry Gorbunov states that a judge whose retirement is terminated is still eligible for a pension. He also mentions that the decision can be challenged, but the chances of it being reconsidered after a verdict are low.
Oleg Loginov, a lawyer at the Intellectual Capital law firm, explains that even before the verdict was passed, the defendant resigned in order to preserve all the benefits and social status of a judge. The qualification board initially approved her request, but then decided to stop the resignation at a meeting on September 23.
Oleg Loginov clarifies that based on the decision mentioned above, Anna Bondarenko is no longer entitled to severance pay, a tax-free monthly life allowance, and other benefits and social payments for retired judges.
Ivan Yezhov, a former judge of the Avtozavodsky District Court of Togliatti, was convicted in February of this year for accepting a large bribe. The court sentenced him to eight years in a strict regime colony and imposed a fine of 1 million rubles. He is also barred from holding certain positions for five years. Investigators found that in March 2019, he received 550 thousand rubles through an intermediary out of the total 1 million rubles bribe. The money was intended to change the charges against him and avoid criminal liability. Another ex-judge, Mikhail Burtsev, was found guilty of bribery by the Volzhsky District Court of Samara and sentenced to seven years in a strict regime colony with a five-year prohibition from holding government positions. It was established that he promised parole to a prisoner for half a million rubles.
Source: “https://acompromat.com/articles/osuzhdennaya_samarskaya_sudya_ostalas_bez_lgot_no_s_pensiej_.html”
Source: Russian elephant
