On Tuesday, members of the State Duma, Russia’s lower house, passed a resolution revoking the parliamentary mandate of a fellow legislator amid an ongoing criminal investigation related to bribery allegations.

Anatoly Voronovsky, a representative of the ruling United Russia party in the State Duma, stands accused of accepting bribes totaling 25 million rubles (approximately $323,000) in connection with road construction contracts. If convicted, he faces a potential maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

In the previous month, the State Duma unanimously voted to remove Voronovsky’s parliamentary immunity, enabling law enforcement to proceed with the investigation and arrest him if necessary.

According to reports, Voronovsky promptly submitted a request to resign from his parliamentary seat after losing his immunity.

Additional reports indicated that he was officially charged with bribery; however, police did not detain him immediately since he surrendered his passport and agreed to appear in court when required.

Prior to the vote on Tuesday, State Duma member Nikolai Kharitonov informed his colleagues that Voronovsky was hospitalized due to “serious injuries” sustained in an accident and advocated for delaying the vote by at least a week.

“I spoke with him this morning. He has no intention of fleeing,” Kharitonov remarked.

Before his election to the State Duma in 2021, Voronovsky held the position of deputy governor of the Krasnodar region in southern Russia.

Reportedly, Alexander Gutsan, the Prosecutor General of Russia, accused Voronovsky of accepting bribes in the form of two apartments and home renovations while serving as deputy governor.

In late October, a CEO of a real estate firm who was allegedly involved in bribing Voronovsky was sentenced to four years in prison for embezzling 209 million rubles (around $2.7 million). According to reports, this CEO testified against Voronovsky under a pre-trial cooperation agreement, leading to the withdrawal of embezzlement charges against him.