Police in Russia's Irkutsk region have filed four administrative charges against local residents who attempted to resell gasoline at inflated prices, classifying their actions as illegal business activity under Article 14.1 of the Administrative Code.
One of those detained, a 20-year-old resident of Irkutsk, posted an online advertisement offering gasoline at 250 rubles per liter. Officers posing as buyers arranged a meeting and detained him. In another case, the trade was conducted near a gas station.
Police also warned that attempting to sell fuel in canisters, in violation of a regional ban, could result in charges under Article 20.6.1 of the Administrative Code for failing to comply with regulations during a high-alert regime.
A day earlier, Irkutsk region Governor Igor Kobzev declared a high-alert regime due to a gasoline crisis. He ordered police and the National Guard (Rosgvardia) to patrol queues at gas stations and suppress illegal fuel sales. The region banned selling gasoline into any container other than a vehicle's fuel tank and introduced a 50-liter limit per refueling.
According to The Insider, amid Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refining infrastructure, fuel shortages have affected 84 Russian regions as well as occupied territories. Authorities attribute the shortages to logistics restructuring and seasonal demand.