The head of the Moscow police's investigative unit Ivan Glukhov has submitted his resignation against a background of an inquiry into alleged bribes taken by one of his deputies.
Glukhov, 56, was a career police official and had served in his position as lead investigator in Moscow since 2006.
He came under pressure after one of his subordinates, senior investigator for high-priority cases Nelly Dmitriyeva, was arrested in October on accusations of having taken a $3 million bribe, a source familiar with the situation told Interfax on Tuesday. Dmitriyeva reportedly gave evidence indicating that Glukhov had been involved in the bribe-taking.
The investigation into corruption by Dmitriyeva was ongoing as of last month.
Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev, appointed to the Cabinet in May, gave Glukhov to understand that he needed to leave his post and offered him a job in the North Caucasus, which Glukhov refused, the source said.
On Monday, three senior police officials were fired from their posts in what is seen as a continuation of changes begun by Kolokoltsev.
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