A new criminal case has been opened against one of Russia's most notorious criminals, thief-in-law Zakhary Kalashov, the RBC news website reported on Thursday.
Zakhary
Kalashov, better known as Sharko Molodoy, was arrested on July 12 for allegedly
extorting 8 million rubles ($125,000) from the owner of a restaurant
in Moscow, an
unidentified law-enforcement source told the RIA
Novosti news site. He also stands accused of organizing
a criminal gang.
Officers from Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) also arrested
several high-ranked officials in the Russian
Investigative Committee on suspicion of taking large bribes related to the Kalashov case.
Deputy head of the Moscow Investigative Committee, Denis Nikandrov, was reportedly detained on Tuesday and accused of receiving a bribe worth $1 million to release Kalashov, RBC reported.
The committee's head of security, Mikhail Maksimenko, was also arrested on charges that gave instructions to investigators not to prolong the arrest of Andrei Kochuylova, Kalashov's right-hand man.
Kalashov has been regarded as a new leader of Russia’s crime world after mobster Aslan Usoyan was killed by a sniper in the center of Moscow in 2013. Kalashov re-emerged on Russia’s criminal scene in 2014 after serving an 8-year prison term in Spain for money-laundering and masterminding criminal organizations.
He has also sentenced in absentia to 18 years in prison for murder in
Georgia. The Georgian government in Tbilisi has repeatedly requested that Kalashov be
extradited, Gazeta.ru
reported.
