ST. PETERSBURG, February 15 (RAPSI, Mikhail Telekhov) – A criminal case over embezzlement of 368 million rubles (about $5 million) the Defense Ministry allocated for the development and manufacturing of a 3D model to be used for repairs of a submarine has reached the St. Petersburg Kirovsky District to be adjudicated on the merits, the United press service of St. Petersburg courts informs RAPSI.

The defendants in the case are the owner of project company AO NovIT PRO Valery Pshenichny and Deputy Chief Engineer of AO Admiralteyskiye Verfi Gleb Yemelchenkov. Since the first defendant committed suicide when in detention, the man is to be tried posthumously.

Investigators allege that the model developed by the defendants was not efficient enough to answer the targets set by the client.

As to other figures involved in the case, NovIT PRO financial officer Denis Pshenichny, arrested in absentia, is on the international wanted list; head of the Admiralteyskiye Verfi Vladimir Baykov is detained and refuses to plead guilty; NovIT PRO CEO Andrey Petrov has already been convicted and sentenced to 3 years in a penal colony and a 500 million rubles ($6.8 million) fine.