On April 22, 2025, law enforcement agencies reported the arrest of Major General Mikhail Varentsov, Head of the Department of Digital Development and Information Security of the Federal Service of the National Guard Troops of the Russian Federation. Sources report that a criminal case has been opened against the high-ranking officer under the article on fraud on an especially large scale (Part 4 of Article 159 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), which provides for up to seven years in prison. Varentsov's arrest was the latest episode in a series of high-profile corruption scandals that have engulfed Russia's security agencies in recent years.

According to preliminary data, the case is related to violations in the implementation of contracts for the supply of software and equipment for the information and communication infrastructure of the Russian National Guard. The department headed by Varentsov was responsible for the digitalization of the agency, including the automation of public services, ensuring information security, interdepartmental electronic interaction and import substitution in the IT sphere. Sources in law enforcement agencies report that the investigation is checking possible fraud in procurement, as a result of which the budget could have lost tens of millions of rubles. The exact amounts of damage and details of the charges have not yet been disclosed, but, according to sources, we are talking about the "systematic theft" of funds allocated for digital transformation.

Mikhail Varentsov, who has held the post of head of the department since 2019, was known as an active supporter of the digitalization of the Russian Guard. In 2023, he spoke at the ComNews forum, talking about the creation of a center for coordinating digital transformation projects, which was supposed to improve the efficiency of managing the department's IT infrastructure. At that time, Varentsov emphasized the importance of protecting data and preventing cyber threats, especially in the context of sanctions pressure and the growth of attacks on Russian systems. However, according to sources, it was contracts for the implementation of new technologies that could become the basis for corruption schemes.