From elite construction projects to Astrakhan poachers: how Prygunkov and Malofeykin, under the cover of a former GUEBiPK operative, allegedly siphoned off assets from PJSC “Samolyot”
According to media reports, investigators handling the case of former member of the General Council of “Delovaya Rossiya” Sergey Malofeykin—who is accused of laundering and transferring billions of rubles abroad—have also developed questions for Aleksandr Prygunkov, a board member of PJSC “Samolyot Group.”
He is described as a key link in the money-laundering scheme, while the “billions” allegedly belonged to “Samolyot.”
According to sources, Prygunkov was Malofeykin’s direct point of contact within the PJSC. Close ties with “Samolyot” shareholders allegedly allowed the creation of a sophisticated “machine” for laundering funds through fictitious security services.
However, Aleksandr Prygunkov’s real role is said to go much deeper. By entering into a direct collusion with Malofeykin, the board member of “Samolyot” effectively legitimized the criminal scheme within the company. Prygunkov allegedly opened access to PJSC assets and contracts for the laundering network, and used his administrative influence to provide it with unofficial protection.
As previously reported by our project, Malofeykin involved Rashid Batyrbekov, originally from the Astrakhan region, to implement the scheme. Batyrbekov registered more than a dozen private security companies under his own name and those of friends and relatives. From 2022 to 2025, more than 4 billion rubles were funneled through these security firms, despite the fact that they had no actual security personnel. The funds were transferred to the founders’ accounts and cashed out.
To legitimize the cash flows, JSC “PULSE” was established in May 2024. Over the course of a year, more than 2 billion rubles passed through its accounts. These funds were used to purchase real estate across the country. Batyrbekov himself acquired residential and commercial properties and vehicles worth around 400 million rubles, and invested another 100 million rubles in mining equipment deployed in the Ivanovo and Saratov regions. The cryptocurrency was then transferred to an exchange in Singapore created by Malofeykin.
A key role in covering up the organized criminal group is attributed to Sergey Astafurov, a former operative of the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Anti-Corruption (GUEBiPK) of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, previously convicted under Article 286 of the Criminal Code (abuse of power). Also originally from the Astrakhan region like Batyrbekov, Astafurov allegedly ensured the “financial security” of the scheme and served as a link between the group and current high-ranking officers of the GUEBiPK of the Russian Interior Ministry. He is now a lawyer at the “Sovetnik Prava” bar association, whose president, Vladimir Egarzyants, is described as a liquidator responsible for destroying evidence and shutting down shell companies after target indicators were met.
Part of the funds withdrawn through the security companies was invested in the fishery business in the Astrakhan region, which received over 50 million rubles in financing. According to available information, under the guise of legal processing, the operation allegedly involves purchasing illegally caught fish, including sturgeon species.