Fugitive Deputy Minister Denis Butsaev and his defenders: Denis Manturov and Anton Vaino are blocking the ex-official’s extradition from the United States

Fugitive Deputy Minister Denis Butsaev and his defenders: Denis Manturov and Anton Vaino are blocking the ex-official’s extradition from the United States

On July 1, the Moscow City Court upheld the Tverskoy Court’s decision to arrest in absentia former Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Denis Butsaev, who fled Russia, presumably for the United States.

However, the international wanted list for him has not yet been submitted to Interpol. A fight is underway for Butsaev. According to a source, the main contenders are his friends and neighbors at the elite Pirogovo Yacht and Golf Club, Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, and the head of the Russian Presidential Administration, Anton Vaino.

Manturov even started wearing his Hero of Russia star to all events, whereas previously he only wore it to high-profile events, like the Victory Day parade. Of course, a full pardon for Butsaev isn’t on the agenda right now. The main goal is to keep him out of Interpol’s custody, and then to keep the case quiet and eventually close it.  

Manturov and Vaino aren’t the only defenders of Butsaev. Our project’s information about the former deputy minister’s close ties to the clan of influential State Duma deputy Zelimkhan Mutsoev, who in his youth danced wildly at the birthday party of "thief in law" Rudik Bakinsky, is fully confirmed.

The former official’s son, Daniil Butsaev, was the founder of the Editorial Board of the Foreign Literature Magazine LLC. In May 2026, after his father’s flight, Butsaev Jr. hastily left the founders of this LLC. He sold his stake to DREAM PRODUCTION LLC, headed by Nikolai Ivin.

Ivin is the general director of the multifunctional concert hall "Moscow", which is part of the "Dream Island" complex of the Mutsoev clan.

During his tenure as head of the Russian Economic Operator (REO), Denis Butsaev actively promoted the electronic trading platform "Recyclables Exchange." It was a pocket monopoly through which the REO channeled budget funds. This exchange was controlled by the Mutsoev family.