Former Sochi mayor Kopaygorodsky sentenced to 15 years in strict-regime colony
In short
A Moscow court sentenced former Sochi mayor Alexey Kopaygorodsky to 15 years in a strict-regime penal colony, fined him 500 million rubles and stripped him of a state award in a corruption case. His wife, Yanina Kopaygorodskaya, was also convicted and sentenced to a colony term, while a third defendant was fined 190,000 rubles. Outlets reported different totals for the bribes and for the sums confiscated.
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The Meshchansky district court in Moscow sentenced former Sochi mayor Alexey Kopaygorodsky to 15 years in a strict-regime penal colony, RBC, RIA Novosti, Kommersant, Meduza and Interfax reported. The court also fined him 500 million rubles, barred him from holding leadership posts in state and local government bodies for 14 years and six months, and stripped him of the medal of the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland” II degree, according to Kommersant, Meduza and Interfax. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 7 ]
Interfax, citing the Prosecutor General’s Office, said the investigation and court established that between January 2022 and March 2024 Kopaygorodsky, with his wife’s assistance, embezzled two land plots in Sochi worth more than 26 million rubles, registering them to his wife and a controlled person to legalise them. The agency said that between March 2022 and May 2024 he received more than 319 million rubles from commercial organisations in exchange for favourable business conditions and general patronage, and that the couple legalised the money by buying real estate. Kommersant reported that the former mayor was accused of taking especially large bribes from developers and businessmen and that the case contained ten criminal episodes. Meduza said the court found him guilty of bribes worth 248 million rubles, while RBC and Kommersant put the bribe total at more than 300 million rubles. [ 2 , 4 , 6 , 7 ]
Kopaygorodsky’s wife, Yanina Kopaygorodskaya, was convicted of mediation in bribery, complicity in embezzlement, money laundering, bribing one witness and pressuring another to change testimony, Kommersant reported. Kommersant and Meduza said she received nine years in a general-regime colony and a 500 million ruble fine; Interfax reported a ten-year sentence with the same fine. Interfax described Alexander Pasunko as her assistant; the court fined him 190,000 rubles, Kommersant and Interfax reported. [ 4 , 6 , 7 ]
The documents differ on confiscation. TASS reported that 510 million rubles were confiscated from the former mayor. Kommersant said the court confiscated 319.7 million rubles, the equivalent of the bribes, and ordered the confiscation of a further 121.643 million rubles in legalised funds, and that it granted a 26.2 million ruble claim by the Sochi mayor’s office. Meduza reported an additional 440 million rubles confiscated in favour of the state and said property worth more than 1.6 billion rubles had been confiscated from the family, including 50 real estate objects, 15 land plots and ten cars. [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]
Kopaygorodsky became mayor of Sochi in September 2019 and resigned in May 2024, saying he was moving to a new position, Meduza reported. Reports said he had gone to the war in Ukraine, and in September it became known that he had been charged in the bribery case and placed under arrest; sources of Russian state agencies said he was detained in Luhansk and taken to Moscow, according to Meduza. [ 6 ]
Prosecutors had asked for 21 years in a strict-regime colony for the former mayor, 16 years for his wife and a 200,000 ruble fine for Pasunko, Kommersant and Meduza reported. The defence sought an acquittal, and Kopaygorodsky and his wife denied guilt, while Pasunko admitted it partially, Kommersant reported. [ 4 , 6 ]
Why it matters
The verdict closes a high-profile corruption case against a former mayor of one of Russia's most prominent resort cities, and imposes one of the longest sentences reported in recent years for an official at that level. Documents give no further basis for broader consequences; the sentencing is a court and law-enforcement matter reported by state and business outlets alike.
Key facts
- Alexey Kopaygorodsky, former mayor of Sochi, was sentenced to 15 years in a strict-regime penal colony. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- He was fined 500 million rubles, barred from state and local government leadership posts for 14 years and six months, and stripped of the medal of the Order “For Merit to the Fatherland” II degree. [ 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- His wife, Yanina Kopaygorodskaya, was convicted and given a colony term and a 500 million ruble fine; outlets differ on whether the term is nine or ten years. [ 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- A third defendant, Alexander Pasunko, was fined 190,000 rubles. [ 4 , 7 ]
- Prosecutors had sought 21 years in a strict-regime colony for the former mayor and 16 years for his wife. [ 4 , 6 ]
- Kopaygorodsky and his wife denied guilt; Pasunko admitted guilt partially, Kommersant reported. [ 4 , 6 ]
- Reports differ on the bribe total: more than 300 million rubles, more than 319 million rubles, or 248 million rubles. [ 2 , 4 , 6 , 7 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- The Meshchansky district court in Moscow sentenced former Sochi mayor Alexey Kopaygorodsky to 15 years in a strict-regime penal colony. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- The court fined him 500 million rubles, barred him from leadership posts for 14 years and six months and deprived him of a state medal. [ 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- His wife, Yanina Kopaygorodskaya, was convicted and fined 500 million rubles. [ 4 , 6 , 7 ]
- Alexander Pasunko was fined 190,000 rubles. [ 4 , 7 ]
- Prosecutors had asked for 21 years for the former mayor, the Prosecutor General’s Office account and Kommersant reported. [ 4 , 6 ]
- Kopaygorodsky and his wife denied guilt; the defence sought an acquittal. [ 4 , 6 ]
Still unclear
- The size of the bribes the court found proven. RBC and Kommersant report bribes of more than 300 million rubles, Interfax reports more than 319 million rubles received from commercial organisations, and Meduza reports the court found bribes of 248 million rubles.
- The length of Yanina Kopaygorodskaya’s sentence. Kommersant and Meduza report nine years in a general-regime colony, while Interfax reports ten years.
- The total sum confiscated. TASS reports 510 million rubles confiscated; Kommersant reports 319.7 million rubles plus a further 121.643 million rubles in legalised funds; Meduza reports an additional 440 million rubles confiscated and property worth more than 1.6 billion rubles taken from the family.
- The circumstances of the former mayor’s detention and his reported service in the war in Ukraine. Meduza, citing sources of Russian state agencies, says he was detained in Luhansk and taken to Moscow; no other document in the set describes this.
- The earlier civil ruling referenced by Kommersant. Kommersant mentions a January 2026 decision by the Khostinsky district court of Sochi turning property into state income, but the article text is cut off before the details are given.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- TASS reports that former Sochi mayor Kopaygorodsky was convicted in an especially large bribe case. [ 1 ]
- RBC reports a 15-year colony sentence for bribes of more than 300 million rubles, embezzlement and legalisation of criminal proceeds. [ 2 ]
- RIA Novosti reports a 15-year sentence for corruption. [ 3 ]
- Kommersant publishes the sentence details: strict-regime colony, 500 million ruble fine, 14.5-year ban on leadership posts, confiscations, and the terms given to his wife and the third defendant. [ 4 ]
- TASS reports that 510 million rubles were confiscated from the former mayor. [ 5 ]
- Meduza reports the verdict, the defence’s request for an acquittal and background on the ex-mayor’s resignation and arrest. [ 6 ]
- Interfax publishes the Prosecutor General’s Office account, including the periods of the crimes and the sentences for all three defendants. [ 7 ]