After Russian police and military top-brass declared their income and revealed information about their property, many were shocked. It turns out that the wealth of some does not match their salary and dramatically exceeds the standards of living in Russia. Let us take, for example, Deputy Prosecutor of St Petersburg Feofil Kekhiopulo. Being suspiciously well provided for, he prefers to put only part of his property on tax roll and takes part in the rivalry of business corporations.       

 

Dwelling, automobile and…

Not long ago the Northwest Transport Prosecutor's Office published information about income of its employees and their property, which triggered much controversy. The tax roll revealed that people working for this supervisory body are millionaires.  

According tо the official accounts, in 2009 Feofil Kekhiopulo earned slightly over a million roubles ($35000) and he ownes a flat (92 square metres), plot of land (781 square metres), cottage (30 squre metres) and unassuming Ford Fusion.

According to the same accounts, in 2009 wife of the former Transport Prosecutor earned moderate 126 thousand roubles ($4500) and she does not have any property. But on the other hand, their daughter has a flat (42,2 square metres)   

At first glance, the Kekhiopulos neither lead a miserable life, no live in style. Their income is that of middle-class. But if we put their property under scrutiny, we will learn more.

 

Dwelling for daughter

Since 2000 the Kekhiopulos have been living in St Petersburg, in a three-bedroom flat in a house in Moskovsky Prospect, facing the Victory Park. Any realtor can confirm that it is a prestige dwelling. 

Right in 2000 Mr Kekhiopulo was advanced from the head of law-implementation department of the Northwest Transport Prosecutor's Office to the Air-Transport Prosecutor. One can assume the family decided to move, because main air gateaway Pulkovo Airport (the transport object Kekhiopulo had to supervise) is only a 15 minutes drive from the Victory park. 

By March 2004 Mr Kekhiopulo's wealth must have increased. His daughter Olga became an owner of a two-bedroom flat in Frunze Street. Her house also faces the park and is just a few minutes walk from the Kekhiopulo's home. This dwelling can be pigeonholed as prestigious.

In March 2004 Olga Kekhiopulo was just 9 years old. There is no information that any member of the family doing business. So we are right to assume that expensive real-estate purchase was made by Feofil Aleksandrovich himself, when he was already in the office of the Transport Prosecutor.  

 

House near the Ice-Palace

To our regret, there is no information available about the income of public prosecution top-brass in 2004. But taking into account the fact that Feofil Kekhiopulo held in 2009 the same position as in 2004 we can use information about his salary in 2009 for calculations about 2004, when the real-estate purchase had been made.

We would remind you that according to official accounts, in 2009 Feofil Kekhiopulo earned 1.023.824 roubles, while his wife - 126.000 roubles. In all we have 1.149.824 roubles or approximately 96.000 roubles ($3400) a month. Besides wife, Kekhiopulo provides two minors. Any citizen of St Petersburg will tell you that such income allows to live fairly comfortably, but it is not enough to buy a flat in a prestigious neighbourhood.      

Let us make unsophisticated estimation. The flat in Frunze Street is relatively small, just slightly over 42 square metres. A square metre in Moskovsky district of St Petersburg costs 82.000 roubles ($3600), according to the price given by http://spb.gdeetotdom.ru (real-estate portal). This is average price in the district. A flat in the house at the corner of Frunze Street and Moskovsky Prospekt costs much more. But even if we take an average price, than the flat for daughter must have cost 3.5 million roubles at the very least (real estate prices have not changed substantially since 2004). Let us allow for inflation - than the price would have been 3 million. It would have taken the Transport Prosecutor 3 years to amass this sum (and during this period he would have needed to stop feeding and clothing himself and his family).    

However Kekhiopulo's property is not restricted to officially declared two flats and cottage with a plot of land. The editorial board has been informed that not long ago Feofil Aleksandrovich has become a lucky owner of a flat in the prestigious «House near the Ice Palace» residential complex (1, Latyshskikh Strelkov), recently built near the Ice Palace in St Petersburg. 

For some reason the tax-roll available at the web-site of Northwest Transport Prosecutor's office lacks the information about this purchase.

 

 

Not the only source of income

There is only one question: how is it possible that a state employee has all these money? There is no clear answer, but there is room for speculation taking into account articles about scandals that Mr Feofil Kehiopulo was involved in.

For example, at the end of last year journalists drew attention to the prosecutor’s extraordinary efforts that concerned the competition between towing companies in St. Petersburg harbour. At that time major towing companies (first of all those affiliated with Gazprom and Lukoil) began to extensively push smaller companies off the market. Reporters noticed that it was Mr Feofil Kehiopulo who initiated actions of government agencies. These actions surprisingly corresponded with the interests of certain business entities.

Moreover, Mr Kehiopulo initiated filing of a lawsuit against one of the most stubborn market participants to St Petersburg Transport Prosecutor’s offices.  Mr Kehiopulo managed to prove that one of the towing companies’ oil transfer terminals were located in the open sea. At the prosecutor’s instigation the court ruled that the mentioned quay was 100 metres offshore and thus could not be considered a terrestrial construction unit. At the same time the towing company presented paperwork that clearly stated that all the company’s assets in the quay were located on land which had been assigned a cadastral number.

At the beginning of this year reporters took interest in Mr Feofil Kehiopulo in relation with a very scandalous situation. For some reason the prosecutor in every possible way assisted illegal import of a large batch of lacquer, varnish and paint materials manufactured by a well-known Greek company HB Body. The fact is air samples from the containers with the product showed a gross violation of maximum allowable concentration (MAC) of harmful substances. Further examination of the product brought up more alarming facts. For instance, there was a violation of MAC of poisonous substances that were not even supposed to be in the product.

But Mr Kehiopulo and his subordinates for some reason did not stick to the interests of consumers who could be harmed by the dangerous paints. On the contrary, they assisted the whole batch detained by the customs to enter the market as soon as possible.

One can only wonder about the prosecutor’s motives for such actions.  But it looks like salary of the prosecutor is not the only source of Mr Kehiopulo’s income.