MOSCOW, August 27 (RAPSI) - Prosecutors have uncovered illicit sale of the Defense Ministry's plots involving former Defense Ministry official Yevgeniya Vasilyeva, who gained notoriety due to the Oboronservis scandal, the Prosecutor General's Office reported Tuesday.

From 2011 till 2012 three plots were illegally sold in auctions on the resolution of the former leaders of the Ministry, the Prosecutor's Office's press release read.

According to prosecutors, Vasilyeva was directly involved in these dealings.

This land transfer caused damage to the state estimated at more than $ 5,8 billion rubles ($176 million).

As previously reported, Vasilyeva along with ousted defense minister Anatoly Serdyukov are suspected of illegally leasing a forest plot in the Bryansk region to a private company for the purpose of mineral resources extraction. The damage caused to the federal budget is estimated at 725 million rubles (app. $22 million), according to the newspaper. The results of the inspection carried out by the investigators have been forwarded to the Chief Military Prosecutor's Office which is expected to make a decision on the alleged fraud.

Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov was dismissed amid a loud corruption scandal ensued in November 2012 to ensure the impartiality of the criminal investigation. He has so far been summoned for questioning as a witness in embezzlement cases linked to Oboronservis defense property services company.

Vasilyeva, the former head of the ministry's Property Management Department, is facing fraud charges and is presently under house arrest.