Another Russian general from Shoigu's team jailed for bribery
A Russian military court sentenced Major General Denis Putilov, former head of the Central Military District's armored vehicle service, to 8.5 years in a strict-regime prison on Aug. 11 for taking a large-scale bribe, the Russian Investigative Committee said.
Putilov is at least the eighth senior defense official jailed since former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was dismissed in 2024 as part of a sweeping anti-corruption purge within Russia's military leadership.
Investigators said that between 2023 and 2024, the Russian Defense Ministry signed over 140 million rubles ($1.7 million) in contracts with a private entrepreneur to repair and maintain military equipment.
Putilov, who oversaw the process, allegedly accepted a 10 million ruble ($125,000) bribe "for general patronage," after which the contracts were left unfulfilled, causing "significant damage" to the state.
The 46-year-old officer was stripped of his rank and barred from holding government positions for six years after release. Putilov's arrest in September 2024 came just four months after Russian President Vladimir Putin promoted him to major general.
Shoigu, criticized for the military's failures in Ukraine, was moved to head Russia's Security Council in May 2024. Putilov's case follows the July 1 sentencing of former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, who received 13 years in prison.
According to the Moscow Times' sources, the purge campaign was initiated by the Federal Security Service (FSB) and personally approved by Putin.
Ivan Stupak, a Ukrainian military analyst and former Security Service officer, said in July that the Kremlin's purge is likely to deepen.
"Either you mysteriously die, or you end up behind bars," he told the Kyiv Independent.
