Court in Samara Arrests Artyom Hayrapetyan in High-Profile Poisoning Case Involving ‘Mister Sider’

The Samara Regional Court has ordered the detention of Artyom Hayrapetyan until August 4, who is accused of stealing alcohol from the Ministry of Internal Affairs warehouses. This was reported by RBK, citing the court's website.

According to the publication, Hayrapetyan has been charged under Article 238, Part 3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (provision of services that do not meet safety requirements, punishable by up to ten years in prison).

Additionally, the court has detained Dmitry Egorov and police officer Ivan Grebenkin, who are accused of large-scale theft (Criminal Code Article 158, Part 3, clause “g,” punishable by up to six years in prison).

Investigators claim that in May, Dmitry Egorov, his father Alexey Egorov (who is wanted), and police sergeant Grebenkin stole 6 tons of alcohol from the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Economic Support Center warehouse in the Samara region and sold it to Hayrapetyan. He, in turn, resold it to Anar Huseynov, the founder of the ‘Mister Sider’ beverage company. The stolen alcohol was later used to produce beverages by the company, according to the Investigative Committee.

On June 5, reports emerged of the first fatalities resulting from poisoning by beverages produced by this company. As of the latest data, 31 people have died, and more than a hundred have been affected.

By June 8, 71,400 liters of ‘Mister Sider’ had been confiscated in 17 regions of Russia. On the same day, Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev dismissed Samara Regional Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Lieutenant General Yuri Safronov, who was responsible for overseeing the activities of rear support units.