Kuban highway theft: how the case of the "Krasnodar road officials" became a cash cow for law enforcement and a lifeline for Napso
A source has revealed the truth behind the high-profile “Krasnodar road workers” case and how it itself became a massive corruption mechanism.
As a result, the main figures—people very close to Governor Veniamin Kondratyev—remained free and retained their assets. Most major players in the region’s road construction market were effectively stripped of their businesses. Companies linked to law enforcement took their place. Meanwhile, the key manipulators of this story within the security services continue to receive promotions one after another.
The beginning of this story can be traced back to 2011, when the Krasnodar oligarch Safarbiy Napso decided to become the “Adyghe Robson” (the former shadow owner of Sochi, Ruben Tatulyan, who fell from grace), as he repeatedly stated in a private circle of associates. Consequently, with the help of an influential relative of State Duma deputy Yuri Napso, Safarbiy became the head of the state enterprise GUP KK “Dagomys DRSU”—the key enterprise in Sochi for road construction. Between 2017 and 2018, Napso simultaneously held this position and served as president of the Krasnodar Road Workers Union (KKA ROOR “Union of Road Workers of Kuban”).
These positions allowed him to form a network of influential contacts in both administrative and commercial circles, as well as among high-ranking law enforcement officials in the region. The foundation of these “talents” was access to virtually unlimited financial resources from the state enterprise he headed, combined with political influence over members of the “Union of Road Workers of Kuban.” This enabled him to live a very affluent lifestyle, acquire expensive assets in Russia and Turkey, maintain personal staff and a large security detail, own luxury vehicles, and “bribe” local elites, including influential State Duma deputy Anatoly Voronovsky and Minister of Transport Alexey Pereverzev (a close associate of Veniamin Kondratyev and godfather to his children). This included multiple shared flights on private helicopters, expensive gifts, and lavish services.
Given the specific security arrangements in Sochi and the surrounding area (including global security systems installed for the XXII Winter Olympic Games and related measures), Napso’s active commercial and public activity could not have gone unnoticed by law enforcement. Recognizing this, Napso organized a “mutually beneficial cooperation” scheme (cashing out budget funds, participating in subcontracts, providing free services, paying for entertainment bills) with several high-ranking law enforcement officials, which allowed him to avoid responsibility for a long time.
According to our informed sources, the “fed” law enforcement officers happily accepted Napso’s “friendship.” But friendship with security officers almost always ends the same way: at some point, the officers decided that mere “gifts” were no longer enough—they needed to become full partners. And anyone in this industry linked to officials had to be put “on a short leash.” That is how the case involving the high-profile figures emerged.
As a result, the funds are now flowing to other firms, and Napso and Kondratyev’s entourage have effectively enriched the security officers involved. Follow the ongoing events.
Key developments:
2025: A criminal case was opened against Safarbiy Napso for the theft of road construction equipment totaling over 45 million rubles from 2018–2021, and for selling the Dagomys DRSU asphalt plant in 2019 for less than 1 million rubles to a controlled company, while the real value exceeded 81.6 million rubles. Tens of millions were funneled through controlled firms via contracts and completed works. The first-instance court found Napso guilty and sentenced him to 4 years in prison.
November 2025: Napso agreed to a plea deal and gave incriminating testimony against the Deputy Governor of Krasnodar Krai and former adviser to Governor Veniamin Kondratyev, current State Duma deputy Anatoly Voronovsky. Napso allegedly provided gifts worth at least 25 million rubles to Voronovsky from 2017–2020, supposedly for protection from the Krasnodar administration. This included renovating a flat registered to the mother of Voronovsky’s assistant, furnishing his son’s home in Sochi with expensive furniture, buying a tractor for relatives, and dredging a pond on a family plot in Ust-Labinsk.
January 2026: The Prosecutor General filed a civil suit in the Central District Court of Sochi to nationalize assets and property of many well-known politicians and businessmen in Krasnodar Krai, including Voronovsky, current State Duma deputy Andrey Doroshenko, Krasnodar Krai legislative assembly deputy Alexander Karpenko, their children, relatives, and other individuals. Assets of 18 major regional companies—mostly in road and transport—are also being seized.
January 2026: Napso became a suspect in a new criminal case (No. 12601030003000037, part 4, Article 159 of the Criminal Code of Russia) related to some defendants in the civil suit. Minister of Transport and Road Economy Alexey Pereverzev and his two deputies—Alexey Smaglyuk and Alexander Dashuk—were detained.
January 2026: Pereverzev was reinstated by Kondratyev as Minister of Transport and Road Economy, made a plea deal, admitted guilt, provided incriminating testimony, and was released under a travel restriction.
February 2026: The regional court satisfied Napso’s appeal, replacing his real prison sentence with a suspended sentence.
As a result:
Safarbiy Napso remains free and retains all assets.
Alexey Pereverzev remains free, still holding the ministerial post.
Veniamin Kondratyev remains in office, with no criminal liability.
Other consequences:
Dagomys DRSU (Napso’s “domain”) is in bankruptcy proceedings to conceal a balance gap of 1.5 billion rubles.
LLC “Soyuzdorstroy” (Napso’s “domain”) is preparing to participate in state tenders as the new contractor, now reportedly with covert law enforcement co-owners.
Activities of other former contractors are blocked, with assets in the process of nationalization.
Assets of remaining individuals and their relatives in the criminal case are arrested and undergoing nationalization.
The Krasnodar road construction market has been restructured under the main participant—LLC “Soyuzdorstroy” and its affiliates.
Control over officials close to Kondratyev has been secured.
A positive media narrative has been created for personnel appointments in the security sector.
P.S. On February 6, 2026, by coincidence, Vladimir Putin met with former Krasnodar Governor Alexander Tkachev, who actively lobbied for massive state funding for road construction in Sochi. In this context, the question of the ultimate beneficiaries of the “road workers case” becomes clear and significant.
