Former governor of Russia's Kursk region is detained, state media reports

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — Russian law enforcement officers are seen in Moscow, Russia, August 18, 2023. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov

MOSCOW (Reuters) -     The former governor of Russia's Kursk region, Alexei Smirnov, was detained on Wednesday on suspicion of fraud, state news agency TASS reported.

Smirnov was head of the western region when Ukrainian troops smashed across the border in a large-scale incursion in August 2024. Since then, a Russian offensive has ejected most of the Ukrainian forces.

Smirnov led the region from May 2024 to December of that year, when he was replaced by Alexander Khinshtein. Smirnov was detained along with his former deputy, Alexei Dedov.

In the first hours of Ukraine's August incursion into Kursk, Smirnov repeatedly offered assurances that the situation was under control, even as Russian border guards were left reeling and in retreat by the surprise attack.

Days later, Smirnov was gently reprimanded by President Vladimir Putin during a televised meeting for focussing on the military situation in his report to the head of state, rather than on efforts to help civilians in Kursk region.

 (Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Maxim Rodionov and Felix Light; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)