Former Murmansk regional assembly deputy Gennady Stepakhno has been arrested on charges of treason

Former deputy chair of the Murmansk Regional Assembly, Gennady Stepakhno, has been arrested for two months on charges of treason (Article 275 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by TASS and RIA Novosti, citing the Murmansk regional FSB office.

According to the FSB, Stepakhno provided staff of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence with documents on the activities of the Murmansk regional government and information about the region’s engineering facilities. The agency claims that he had access to these materials because of his parliamentary powers.

Stepakhno is 76 years old. He served as a deputy in the Murmansk Regional Assembly for four consecutive terms, led the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) faction and held the post of deputy chair of the regional parliament. Stepakhno is an oceanologist by training and holds a PhD in geography. He has also worked at the Murmansk Oceanarium and the Union of Northern Fishery Producers.

Stepakhno was not elected to the current session of the regional assembly. Shortly before his detention, the Murmansk branch of the KPRF initiated disciplinary proceedings against him and demanded his expulsion from the party.