13-year jail for former top Russian official on corruption charges

A court in the Russian capital on Tuesday convicted a former deputy defence minister on corruption charges and sentenced him to 13 years in prison.

Timur Ivanov is the most visible figure in a far-ranging probe into alleged military corruption that also targeted several other top officials close to former defence minister Sergei Shoigu.

Shoigu, a veteran official who had personal ties with President Vladimir Putin, survived the purges of his inner circle and was given the new high-profile post of secretary of Russia's Security Council.

Ivanov, 49, was named deputy defence minister in 2016 and oversaw military construction projects, as well as property management, housing and medical support for the military.

He was known for his lavish lifestyle that outraged many in Moscow just as the fighting in Ukraine exposed glaring deficiencies in Russian military organisation and supplies that resulted in battlefield setbacks.