Military official arrested after bribe taking

A military official has been detained in Estonia for alleged bribe taking involving up to ten companies.

The suspect was a protocol service specialist who was in charge of organizing transport and accommodation for guests, reported Delfi.

The specialist is suspected of taking bribes in exchange for giving preference to companies competing to provide these services. The suspect left the Defense Forces after the suspicions emerged.

One of the many companies that are suspected of involvement in the scheme is ATKO Grupp, a North District Prosecutor's press representative, Arno Põder, told uudised.err.ee. He said the company's offices were searched on Nov. 1. 

"The prosecutor can confirm that in this criminal case among those suspected of giving a bribe are the subsidiaries of AS ATKO Grupp," said Põder, adding that the company's supervisory board chairman Arvo Sarapuu, a deputy mayor of Tallinn, is not on the list of suspected individuals.