St. Petersburg billionaire Ilya Traber has described Moscow's Lefortovo prison as strict and polite after investigators cleared him of involvement in a 2020 contract murder case.
Traber was released from custody after spending two and a half months in detention when an investigator dropped all charges against him, citing inconsistent witness testimony.
Speaking to St. Petersburg news outlet Fontanka, the businessman said that the high-security facility was strict, but surprisingly polite. He stated that he never felt any rudeness or humiliation while held at the site. Traber added that he particularly remembered waffles he ordered from the local stall, noting that they were from his childhood and that he had not eaten them for 60 years.
Detention and cleared murder charges
Authorities detained Traber in mid-June in connection with the 2020 killing of Aleksandr Petrov, a local municipal deputy from Vyborg. Traber was charged in the contract killing case, but after two and a half months in detention, the investigator released the businessman and dropped all charges against him. Law enforcement officials concluded that the testimony provided against the billionaire was inconsistent.
Traber is a prominent St. Petersburg businessman and billionaire who holds extensive commercial interests across northwestern Russia, particularly in port infrastructure and maritime logistics. The legal proceedings against him were connected to the death of Petrov, a businessman and municipal deputy from Vyborg, a historic town in the Leningrad Oblast near the border with Finland, who was shot and killed at his estate in October 2020.
Lefortovo remand prison conditions
Lefortovo Prison is a historic remand facility in Moscow that primarily holds high-profile suspects, state security detainees, and prominent business figures awaiting trial. Operated under Russia's federal penitentiary system, the facility is widely known for its strict security regime and high level of inmate isolation.
Fontanka is an established online news organization headquartered in St. Petersburg that reports on legal affairs, business developments, and regional politics in northwestern Russia. Traber gave his account of his confinement to the publication after returning to private life following the dismissal of all criminal allegations.
