MOSCOW, July 12 (RAPSI) - The Presnensky District Court of Moscow on Wednesday sentenced Russian businessman Sergey Polonsky to 5 years in prison for large-scale embezzlement but released him from punishment, RAPSI learnt from the court.

The businessman was freed from jail in the courtroom because the statute of limitation had expired.

On June 20, a prosecutor asked the court to sentence the defendant to 8 years in prison and a 900,000-ruble (about $15,000) fine.

In December 2016, after a prosecutor had read the indictment, Polonsky denied all charges.

According to investigators, Polonsky, aided by Alexander Paperno, Head of the Mirax Group Finance Department and Alexey Pronyakin, CEO of Avanta company, have defrauded participants of shared construction apartment projects of 2.6 billion rubles ($43 million at the current exchange rate), thus committing a serious crime.

Polonsky, who is the founder of Potok (formerly Mirax Group), a diversified corporation that has been involved in several large development projects, is deemed to cause damages in amount of 2.4 billion rubles regarding Kutuzov Mile and 256 million rubles with regard to Rublyovskaya Riviera development projects.

Other projects Polonsky has been involved in include Federation Tower in the Moscow International Business Center, office buildings Mirax Plaza, Poklonnaya 11 and Admiral, condominium developments Mirax Park, Golden Keys 1 and 2, and the Well House.

In May 2015, the Cambodian authorities, where Polonsky had been avoiding Russian prosecution, extradited him to Russia.