Ivanov, who is an ally of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, was arrested Tuesday evening and is suspected of taking a large bribe, which is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

The Kremlin denied reports that Ivanov was suspected of treason.

Ivanov, 48, has previously been sanctioned by both the United States and European Union following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

A Russian court statement revealed that Ivanov and an acquaintance named Sergei Borodin were arrested and charged with conspiring to receive bribes in the form of unspecified property services during defense ministry contracts.

Both men were ordered jailed pending investigation and trial.

Ivanov, who was appointed in 2016 to oversee property management, housing, medical support, and construction projects for the military, is accused of corruption.

The Defense Ministry's website confirmed Ivanov's appointment.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that Defense Minister Shoigu and President Putin were informed of Ivanov's arrest, which occurred during the third year of Russia's war in Ukraine.

Russian officials, including spokesperson Dmitry Peskov and Ivanov's lawyer, have dismissed reports that corruption charges against Ivanov are intended to hide allegations of high treason.

Independent Russian news outlets claimed that the bribery charges were a cover-up, citing unidentified sources close to the Federal Security Service.

Peskov described these reports as speculation and urged reliance on official information.

Ivanov's lawyer also denied any other charges, stating that his client faced only bribery allegations.

Before his arrest, Ivanov was seen attending a meeting with Shoigu and other military brass, and was reportedly involved in some of the construction in Mariupol, a Ukrainian port city devastated by war and occupied by Russian forces.

In summer 2022, Zvezda, the Russian military's official TV channel, reported that Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov was overseeing the construction of a residential block in Mariupol.

However, the same year, opposition leader Alexei Navalny's team accused Ivanov and his family of enjoying luxurious trips abroad, hosting lavish parties, and owning elite real estate.

Navalny's ally, Maria Pevchikh, celebrated the allegations against Ivanov on social media.

Despite the prevalence of corruption in Russia, prosecutions of high-level officials for such crimes remain uncommon.

In April 2023, former Deputy Culture Minister Olga Yarilova was arrested and charged with embezzling over 200 million rubles ($2.2 million) during her tenure between 2018 and 2022.

She is currently on trial and faces a seven-year jail term.

Previously, in 2017, former Economics Minister Alexei Ulyukayev received an eight-year prison sentence for accepting a $2 million bribe from one of Putin's associates.

The high-profile trial was believed to be a result of infighting between Kremlin clans.

Ulyukayev, now 68, was granted early release from prison in May 2022.