A Moscow investigator has been arrested...

The Investigative Committee said Andrei Grivtsov was arrested on Saturday for extorting the bribe from the head of electrical engineering company Rosenergomash for not opening a criminal case against him.

A Moscow City Court earlier reported that Grivtsov was detained on suspicion of extorting a $500 million bribe.

If convicted, the investigator may face up to 12 years in prison.

President Dmitry Medvedev pledged to fight corruption when he entered office in May 2008, highlighting the issue as one of the country"s most serious problems.

A series of scandals involving police in 2009 culminated in a presidential decree ordering a major overhaul of the Interior Ministry, with personnel cuts of 20% over two years to be balanced by higher salaries for remaining staff.

MOSCOW, January 17 (RIA Novosti)