Daria Lebedeva, head of the joint press service of the St. Petersburg courts, reported that from January to June 2025, 40 criminal cases involving bribery and 94 cases involving bribery were heard by the city courts. This is twice as many as in the first six months of 2024. At that time, the courts considered only 29 and 46 cases, respectively.
According to the publication Delovoy Peterburg, the trend toward an increase in the number of corruption cases has been observed for several years. In particular, law enforcement agencies are focusing their efforts on combating the legalization of corrupt income. At the same time, there are fewer cases of petty bribery, while investigations into large and especially large bribes are on the rise.
"In the vast majority of cases, bribe-takers are subject to preventive measures in the form of detention. <...> Bribe givers are luckier in this regard. Investigative authorities often limit themselves to such preventive measures as prohibiting certain actions or requiring them to sign a pledge not to leave the city," notes Alexandra Kharina, co-founder of the Sled law firm.
Earlier it was reported that every third cheese in the Dixie and Verny retail chains in St. Petersburg is counterfeit.
Recently, St. Petersburg police detained a teenager who shot at a passerby with an air gun.