Former managing director of JSC "Tupolev" Konstantin Timofeev is under house arrest, BUSINESS Online reports, citing sources. At the same time, investigators demanded that he be placed in a pre-trial detention center.
Timofeev's case may be linked to embezzlement during the modernization of the Kazan Aviation Plant (KAZ), the Telegram channel "Voennyi Osvedomitel" claims. An audit conducted at KAZ for more than six months revealed inflated cost estimates during the modernization of the enterprise: according to the channel, the total amount of overpayments from state funds is estimated at about 100 million rubles.
Timofeev headed "Tupolev" for only 10 months — from January to November 2024, becoming one of the most short-lived top managers in the aviation industry. A financier by his first education, he also graduated from MAI and holds pilot licenses, including for the Tu-214. In the industry, he was remembered for a candid interview about unreliable data in reports on aircraft production.
Aviation expert Aleksei Zakharov doubts that Timofeev is the main figure in the case. This is indicated by the leniency of the preventive measure: in such cases, detention is usually applied to rule out influence on the investigation.
In cases of this scale, detention is usually used to exclude the suspect's influence on the course of the investigation. Secondly, according to unofficial information, it has not yet been possible to determine where the money ultimately went. The prosecutor's office and auditors continue to work in Kazan. So it cannot be ruled out that new facts and other persons involved will emerge regarding the embezzlement at KAZ.
The Kazan Aviation Plant was founded in 1934 and produced Pe-2, Tu-16, Tu-22M, and Tu-160 bombers, as well as Tu-104, Il-62, and Tu-214 civilian airliners. The enterprise is currently engaged in the production of the Tu-214, the modernization of the Tu-22M3 and Tu-160, and also participates in the PAK-DA program — the creation of a new strategic bomber.