The Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF) has uncovered evidence that Tatarstan head Rustam Minnikhanov is running the multibillion-ruble Luciano business empire, formally owned by his wife, Gulsina Minnikhanova, despite Russian law prohibiting public officials from engaging in business activities.

For years, Minnikhanov has explained his family’s enormous wealth by pointing to his wife’s successful business career. But documents and private correspondence examined by ACF tell a different story: Minnikhanov receives financial reports, oversees construction projects, gives instructions to Luciano executives, and is regularly contacted by the company’s CEO to report on business matters.

Companies linked to the family own two enormous residences in Kazan and outside the city, a Moscow apartment worth around 400 million rubles, and 22 apartments with a combined area of more than 2,000 square meters. Minnikhanov also uses a Falcon 8X private jet worth around 3 billion rubles. According to the documents we uncovered, maintaining the family’s real estate alone costs more than 11 million rubles a year — more than Minnikhanov’s officially declared annual income.

ACF has filed a complaint with prosecutors and is demanding Minnikhanov’s removal from office. We also believe that Minnikhanov and the Luciano business empire should be placed under European Union sanctions.