You're reading: Court orders Kirov Governor Belykh’s arrest in Russia

MOSCOW - Moscow's Basmanny District Court has ordered Kirov Region Governor Nikita Belykh's arrest on charges of accepting a major bribe, an Interfax correspondent reported from the courthouse.

“The court rules to grant the investigation’s motion and choose a restrictive measure in the form of taking defendant Belykh into custody for two months, that is, until August 24,” Judge Artur Karpov said after hearing the investigation’s motion on arresting Belykh for two months on Saturday.

The court declined Belykh’s and his defense team’s motion on releasing the Kirov governor on bail or placing him under house arrest at a community outside Moscow.

The Russian Investigative Committee’s special investigations department has indicted Kirov Region Governor Nikita Belykh for major bribery (Russian Criminal Code Article 290 Part 6), Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said earlier on Saturday.