Former senior Russian Defence Ministry official from North Ossetia detained in corruption case
Russian authorities have detained former Defence Ministry Ruslan Tsalikov, a North Ossetia native and a close associate of ex-Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, on charges of embezzlement, money laundering, and accepting bribes.
Russia’s Investigative Community stated that Tsalikov created a criminal structure which operated between 2017–2024 and was involved in the embezzlement of budget funds. He is also accused of laundering criminal proceeds and accepting bribes.
He has been placed under house arrest for two months.
According to the Telegram channels VChK-OGPU and Rucriminal.info, Tsalikov was detained after being summoned for questioning by an investigator. They claim that testimony against Tsalikov was given by several defendants in other corruption cases involving the Defence Ministry who had cooperated with investigators in exchange for more lenient sentences.
According to the same Telegram channels, investigators may combine Tsalikov’s case with a string of corruption cases against other former deputy defence ministers, including Timur Ivanov and Pavel Popov.
Publications by VChK-OGPU also cite data on the assets of Tsalikov’s relatives. They claim that tens and hundreds of millions of rubles were held in bank accounts belonging to members of his family. In particular, they say that in 2024, more than ₽256 million ($3.2 million) were held in the account of his younger son, Zaur Tsalikov.
Tsalikov served as First Deputy Defence Minister of Russia from 2015. In June 2024 he left the post shortly after Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed Shoigu. Tsalikov was described as one of Shoigu’s closest associates. Before working at the Defence Ministry he held senior positions in agencies previously headed by Shoigu.
After leaving the ministry, Tsalikov was elected a deputy of the parliament of Tuva, the region where Shoigu was born. Tsalikov was expected to become Tuva’s representative in the Federation Council.
Tsalikov holds the rank of active state councillor of the Russian Federation, first class. This civilian rank corresponds to the military rank of general of the army.
After the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Tsalikov was placed on sanctions lists by the US, UK, and EU.
In 2022, the Anti-Corruption Foundation reported that Tsalikov’s family owned real estate and other assets worth about ₽4.3 billion ($55 million). The foundation published an investigation claiming that a significant portion of the property was registered in the names of the official’s relatives.
Tsalikov’s detention comes amid a series of criminal cases against senior Defence Ministry officials who held leadership positions during Shoigu’s tenure.
In April 2024, Deputy Defence Minister Timur Ivanov was arrested. Investigators accused him of accepting bribes from companies involved in construction projects for the Defence Ministry.
Criminal cases were later launched against other high-ranking military officials. Among them are former Deputy Defence Minister Dmitry Bulgakov, the head of the Defence Ministry’s Main Personnel Directorate, Yury Kuznetsov, and head of the Main Communications Directorate Vadim Shamarin. Russian investigators link these cases to corruption offences.
On Thursday it also became known that the Voronezh garrison military court had sentenced Major General Valery Mumindzhanov, former deputy commander of the Leningrad Military District, to 10 years in prison. The court found him guilty of accepting a bribe from businessperson Oleg Trebunskikh. According to investigators, the money was paid for contracts to produce military headgear and to provide laundry services for military uniforms. Mumindzhanov partially admitted guilt.
