Russia's LDPR Leader Says Will Not Expel Party Member Suspected Of Serious Crime

The leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), Vadimir Zhirinovsky, said that Sergey Furgal, the governor of Khabarovsk Territory in the Russian Far East detained earlier on Thursday, would not be expelled from the party

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 09th July, 2020) The leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), Vadimir Zhirinovsky, said that Sergey Furgal, the governor of Khabarovsk Territory in the Russian Far East detained earlier on Thursday, would not be expelled from the party.

According to the investigators, the governor has been detained as part of the probe into an organized criminal group involved in serious offenses against businesspeople in Khabarovsk Territory and Amur region in 2004-2005. The Investigative Committee said that killers and an organizer of a killing involved in past crimes testified against Furgal.

The investigators have also collected testimonies of witnesses and victims.

"We have protected and will protect our people and will never expel Furgal form the party," Zhirinovsky said.

According to the LDPR leader, the detention itself was done in an inappropriate manner.

"There was no need to handcuff him, the governor is not a criminal, he will not run," Zhirinovsky said.