In the Chelyabinsk region, the FSB has detained three high-ranking officials of the regional department of the Federal Penitentiary Service (GUFSIN) on suspicion of organizing the illegal use of prison labor for personal gain. This was reported by Baza, citing law enforcement sources. The arrestees include Colonel Sergei Bulchuk, the first deputy head of the department; Colonel Oleg Mokhov, the head of the operational security service; and Colonel Marina Ufimtseva, the agency's chief accountant. A representative of a private firm who acted as an intermediary has also been targeted.

According to investigators, officers systematically recruited prisoners to work at prison colony production facilities, ignoring provisions of the Russian Criminal Code that stipulate voluntary and paid labor. The prisoners worked on private contracts, and the proceeds went to officials in the form of bribes. According to the investigation, the businessman paid up to several million rubles per month for access to "slave labor." Searches were conducted in the detainees' apartments, and documents and cash were seized. Cases have been opened under Articles 286 (abuse of authority), 290 (accepting a bribe), and 291 (giving a bribe) of the Russian Criminal Code, with possible sentences of up to 15 years in prison.