Support The Moscow Times!

Barsukov Handed 14 Years for Fraud

Reputed St. Petersburg crime boss Barsukov, left, sitting in the defendant?€™s cage in a Moscow court on Thursday. Vladimir Filonov

Reputed St. Petersburg crime boss Vladimir Barsukov was sentenced to 14 years in prison late Thursday after being convicted of fraud and money laundering during a high-profile trial.

St. Petersburg’s Kuibyshevsky District Court, whose staff moved to the Moscow City Court for the trial out of fear for the safety of the participants, ruled that Barsukov and seven co-defendants were guilty of money laundering and organizing the illegal takeover of companies and property in St. Petersburg between July 2005 and June 2006.

Prosecutors had asked the court to sentence Barsukov to 15 1/2 years in a maximum-security prison and to fine him 1 million rubles ($34,880).

The court on Thursday also ordered Barsukov to pay the 1 million ruble fine.

Barsukov, who has maintained his innocence, is believed to have led the powerful Tambov crime group in St. Petersburg in the 1990s. He was arrested at his country home outside St. Petersburg in August 2007 by dozens of OMON police officers who were brought from Moscow, while local law enforcement agencies were left in the dark to prevent information leaks.

The courtroom was packed with people Thursday. A dozen armed officers guarded the two defendants’ cages, while the onlookers included about 25 prosecutors who had pressed the charges against Barsukov and his associates at various times and three dozen photographers, television cameramen and reporters.

The court handed down punishments ranging from five to 15 years in prison to the seven co-defendants: Vyacheslav Drokov, Pavel Tsyganok, Albert Starostin, Oleg Kumishche, Dmitry Malyshev, Valery Astashko and Alexander Baskakov.

“Barsukov and Drokov dealt with general questions and coordinated the activities of the criminal group,” Judge Yelena Gorbunova said in announcing the guilty verdicts.

She said Barsukov had pleaded not guilty, while Drokov had pleaded partially guilty to the charges.

Barsukov faces a second trial on charges of organizing murder and attempted murder in a separate criminal case.

Several foreign publications have speculated that Barsukov might have had ties to Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in the 1990s, when Putin worked in the St. Petersburg city government. The reports said Barsukov was a board member of a Russian subsidiary of the German firm SPAG, where Putin once worked as a consultant. Barsukov has repeatedly denied any links with Putin, and Putin’s spokespeople have declined to comment about Putin’s ties to SPAG.

A native of Tambov, Barsukov, who changed his last name several years ago from Kumarin, is thought to have assembled the infamous Tambov gang with natives from his hometown in the 1990s.

The illegal takeover of companies and property is a bane of businesspeople in Russia. President Dmitry Medvedev called for tougher punishment against such raiders Nov. 5.

In October, Investigative Committee chief Alexander Bastrykin proposed introducing a new clause in the Criminal Code that would cover corporate raiding.

The Investigative Committee has opened more than 70 criminal cases into corporate raiding over the past two years and 12 cases were sent to court in the same period, Bastrykin said.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more