Article 35 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation gives a clear definition of organized crime groups. Literally, this term means “organized criminal group.” This is a stable association of persons that is organized in advance for the joint implementation of one or more crimes. The interaction of group members is in itself a form of complicity in the acts they commit.
The purpose of creating an organized crime group may be to further commit specific crimes or may be focused on the general direction of illegal actions. The method of organizing a group is a preliminary conspiracy of its participants.
Resilience as a characteristic of a group
Resilience is one of the main characteristics of an organized crime group. This is a special and very strong type of subjective connection.
Sustainability can be based on the following factors:
- long-standing personal or work connections of the participants;
- high professionalism and extensive experience in criminal activities;
- multiple episodes of crimes;
- the presence of special technical devices for committing illegal acts;
- careful preparation and planning of crimes with a clear distribution of roles between group members.
Each organized crime group has its own “backbone” of permanent participants, despite the fact that its other members may change periodically.
Sometimes an organized crime group can be organized for the purpose of committing one atrocity, if this requires particularly careful preparation and planning. In this case, the boundary between the concepts of an organized crime group and a group of persons acting by prior conspiracy is erased.
Attention! A stable organized crime group is characterized by a high degree of development of the group in the course of each illegal act committed. The actions of attackers aimed at preventing their exposure are constantly being improved. Therefore, a stable group is much more dangerous than an unstable one.
Basics of criminal business: racketeering
It cannot be said that such a phenomenon has never been observed in the Soviet space, but the era of impunity has given everyone a free hand. In order to be able to develop, aspiring entrepreneurs, having not received support from the state, turned to “authoritative” people for help. But not everyone managed to stay afloat. Using blackmail and threats, the bandits extorted significant sums from entrepreneurs. If payments were refused, all available methods were used, from kidnapping children and other half to torture and murder.
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Participants and composition of the organized crime group
In every organized crime group there is a vertical and horizontal hierarchy.
The pyramidal structure is the basis for the manifestation of connections between members of an organized crime group based on subordination. This is expressed in the fact that members of the lower level carry out the orders of the organizer.
Horizontal hierarchy is manifested in the coordination of actions between representatives of the same level.
Each organized criminal group acts as a single, well-established mechanism, and all its members, to a greater or lesser extent, interact with each other to achieve certain criminal goals.
In the process of expanding the sphere of influence of organized crime groups, the interests of competitors may be affected. In this case, a situation of confrontation arises between them. All members of the group take part in the counteraction. Therefore, establishing and analyzing the chain of connections between participants in an organized crime group helps to identify its entire composition.
Leader of the organized crime group
The leader occupies a special place in the structure of the group. In most cases, he is simultaneously the organizer of all crimes committed by the group.
The leader performs the following functions:
- determines the main goals and objectives of the group’s activities;
- plans crimes and distributes roles between participants in the crime;
- serves as treasurer;
- coordinates the interaction of attack participants and all members of the formation;
- attracts new participants;
- establishes and establishes relations with authorities;
- develops a strategy to counter ongoing investigations, etc.
In some cases, other members of the so-called “backbone” of the group also participate in the leadership and organization of the formation’s activities.
There are 2 types of organized crime groups leaders:
- an active member of a criminal group who is charged with the responsibility of making decisions in situations that are important for the activities of the group;
- “shadow leader” - a person who does not directly participate in the atrocities committed, remains unknown to ordinary members of the organization and gives orders and advice to the active leader of the criminal group.
Leaders of the second type, as a rule, are not identified as a result of investigation.
Raiding
This was more typical for the early 90s. Raiding consisted of a violent seizure of a building, often of the people working there and the owner. The goal was to blackmail employees and transfer the business to the gang leader. There was such a scheme when the scammers bought a minimum share of shares, after which documents were drawn up on their re-election of a new general director, after which this application was sent to the court and over time, all the property was transferred to the use of the bandits.
What type of organized crime groups can there be?
All organized criminal groups are divided into the following types:
- Simple. This group has a primitive structure with members ranging from 2 to 4 people. Decisions in a simple organized crime group are made collectively. As a rule, there is no clearly defined leader. The lifespan of such a formation usually does not exceed 3 years, after which the participants in most cases change.
- Structural organized crime group. This formation has greater stability than a simple group. There is a hierarchy among the participants. Management of the group is concentrated in the hands of the leader. Structural organized crime groups are engaged in professional thefts, robberies, fraud, extortion, smuggling, and robbery.
Tops
The “foremen” who proved themselves became “fighters” and performed other functions. They did not need to transfer money to the common fund. They were supported by people of authority. Today they could earn from 70 to 200 thousand rubles. But this amount was not the limit; they could sell the stolen property, which included cars, expensive furniture, and luxury real estate. The heart of the organized crime group was 30-50 people, they were involved in planning all actions and leading the “fighters”. They could often be found on the board of directors of protected enterprises. At the current exchange rate, their income was 600-800 thousand rubles per month.
The leaders, or so-called “authorities,” tried not to stand out. In a single organized crime group their number did not exceed 7 people. As a rule, these people made joint decisions that concerned vital aspects of the group's existence. It is difficult to talk about the incomes of these people, because they were different, but sometimes they could earn up to several million dollars. The price for such a life was the fear of contract killing from the leader of another gang.
Classification of criminal groups
OCGs can be classified according to different criteria. For example, according to the focus of crimes, groups are divided into the following types:
- Common criminals. Such organized crime groups, in turn, are also divided into two subtypes. The former do not use harsh force and are engaged in such types of criminal activities as, for example, drug trafficking. OCGs of the second subtype are focused on armed methods. These are gangster-type formations.
- Operating in the field of economic crime. Some of them commit atrocities within 1-2 economic or financial structures. These are closed organized crime groups. Open groups strive to expand their area of influence.
- Mixed.
OCGs are also classified depending on whether they have corrupt connections. They are divided into the following types: those with such connections and those without them.
Depending on the territorial zone of activity, organized crime groups can be local, interregional and international.
"Protection"
The main source of income for the criminal world was “patronage.” The amount that the entrepreneur was required to pay varied from 20 to 30% of income. The protection service helped protect against other gangs and helped solve problems in the form of finding a market. The bandits did not disdain anything for refusing this kind of service. If necessary, they resorted to sophisticated torture and even murder.
Criminal liability for participation in an organized crime group
The legislation of the Russian Federation provides for criminal liability for participation in an organized crime group for both its leaders and other members. The degree of responsibility depends on the type of crime, the type of group and the form of participation in its activities.
Qualification of crimes committed by an organized group
A crime is considered committed by members of a group if it involved a stable group of people who previously united to commit one or more atrocities.
In practice, it is very important to correctly determine the form of complicity of members of such a formation in order to determine the degree of criminal liability for each of them, according to the existing classification of crimes.
Practice of application of Article 35 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for organized crime groups
Article 35 applies in cases where a criminal act is committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy. This does not apply to the organizers of organized crime groups. Article 210, which is considered especially serious, applies to the creators of a criminal group.
According to the judicial practice of applying Article 35 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, all members of an organized crime group who took or did not take part in the crime are recognized as co-perpetrators and bear criminal liability.
Persons who are not members of an organized crime group, but assisted in the atrocities being committed, are recognized as accomplices, instigators or organizers of the crime, depending on the role they performed.
Attention! The fact of the creation of an organized crime group in itself is already a basis for bringing a person to criminal liability, regardless of whether this group managed to commit any crime or not.
Practice of application of Article 208 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for organized crime groups
Article 208 applies to members of armed formations (Part 2) and to their organizers (Part 1). These can be detachments, squads, as well as extremist and terrorist groups. A mandatory element of a crime is the illegality of such organizations. Not all members of the formation may be armed. This does not exclude the existence of a crime.
In practice, a crime committed under Article 208 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation entails punishment for members of the group in the form of imprisonment for a period of 8 to 15 years with restriction of freedom for a period of 1-2 years. The organizer of a criminal armed group is punishable by imprisonment from 10 to 20 years and restriction of freedom for 1-2 years.
Attention! Members of an organized criminal group who for the first time violated the law under Article 208 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, ceased their participation in the illegal group and voluntarily surrendered their weapons, are exempt from criminal liability provided that there is no other crime in their actions.
Practice of application of articles 210 and 210.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for organized crime groups
Article 210 provides for criminal punishment for the organizers of the group and participants occupying a high position in its hierarchy.
Initially, this article was intended to combat thieves in law and corrupt government officials associated with them. But fairly quickly, judicial practice showed that the article can be used in any other category of cases.
Today, thieves in law rarely get charged. But it has become widely used against persons who have committed economic or official crimes. The article is applied in cases of drug sales, organization of gambling establishments, etc.
However, significant changes were made to this article in March 2021. Now, founders, participants, managers, members of management bodies and employees of legal entities or their structural divisions are not subject to Article 210 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation only due to the organizational structure of the organization and “the commission of any crime in connection with the exercise of their powers to manage the organization or in connection with the implementation of entrepreneurial or other economic activities.”
There is an exception. These are cases where a commercial organization or its structural division was knowingly created to commit a serious or especially serious crime.
A crime under Article 210 entails punishment in the form of imprisonment for a term of 8 to 15 years with restriction of freedom for 1-2 years. In addition, fines of up to 5 million rubles are often applied to persons who violate the law. and in the amount of his salary or other income received for a period of up to 5 years.
The norm that concerns gatherings is included as a separate crime, i.e. meetings of organized crime groups leaders with the aim of organizing at least one atrocity. This is punishable by imprisonment from 12 to 20 years with the possibility of fines in the amount of 1 million rubles.
3rd place: Podolsk
City: Podolsk, Moscow region Number of people: more than 100 people Years of existence : 1990−2000s
Spheres of influence: all key businesses in Podolsk came under the control of organized crime groups: banks, construction companies, gas stations, car service centers and shops. The bandits also managed to take control of the Chekhov and Serpukhov regions. In addition, they created their own brigades in Kyiv and Urengoy.
Capital and assets: in one scam alone in 1991, the organized crime group collected $30 million (taking into account inflation, today it is $55 million). Then, through a controlled company, the Podolsk residents announced that they were going to purchase a large batch of high-quality sugar abroad, and invited citizens to place orders by making an advance payment. Having collected the money, the criminals disappeared.
According to unconfirmed rumors, the killers of the organized crime group traveled to the United States to “work” and took $10,000 for each contract killing.
The leader and his entourage: in 1995, the Main Military Prosecutor's Office detained businessman Sergei Lalakin. The media claimed that he is one of the leaders of the Podolsk organized crime group. But his involvement could not be proven, and Lalakin was released. Today he is an honorary citizen of Podolsk, awarded the personalized watch of the President of Russia and the medal “For Loyalty to Duty and Fatherland.”
The most notorious crimes: it is assumed that the gang was responsible for the murder of the authority Sergei Fedyaev with the self-explanatory nickname Psycho. He was killed in 1992 near a cafe on the Moscow-Serpukhov highway. A headless corpse was found near one of the Podolsk villages. It was not possible to officially prove the involvement of the Podolsk organized crime group in the murder of Psycho, and the criminal case was suspended.
What happened to the gang: the fate of most of the participants in the Podolsk organized crime group is not reliably known. One of the authoritative members of the gang is considered to be the former co-owner of the Vityaz sports club and the head of the Chekhov Vid media holding, Oleg Strekalov. He is now on the international wanted list. He is suspected of theft of federal lands, fraud and organizing a criminal community. The businessman denies guilt and notes with regret that he was turned into “some kind of fugitive bandit” and his business was “torn apart.”
Before the accusations, Strekalov was so popular that Chekhov’s channels wished him a happy birthday every year. Strekalov had substantial capital: for example, before problems with justice, he sold a trading store he owned for $55 million.
History of organized crime groups in Russia
OCG of Kazan
Both in the dashing nineties, and now, “Kazan organized crime groups” still exist and periodically remind of themselves. Read the history of Kazan organized crime groups .
Slonovskaya organized crime group
The Ryazan organized crime group “Elephants” , whose members were convicted back in the “dashing 90s”, is one of the most brutal criminal groups in the modern history of Russia. The cruelty of the “elephants” shocked even seasoned scumbags. about the famous Slonovskaya organized crime group here>>> .
Shchelkovo organized crime group
The Shchelkovskys are a powerful organized crime group that operated from the mid-1990s to the early 2000s. The group was based in the Shchelkovo region of the Moscow region and was known for committing many murders. Read the story of the Shchelkovskys here >>> .
Malyshevskaya organized crime group
The Malyshevskaya organized crime group was one of the first in Russia to receive its name from the surname of its leader, and not based on geography. This group is still closely connected with the state. structures and authorities in Russia. Read more here>>> .
OPG "Uralmash"
The Uralmash organized crime group is another famous organized crime group, the history of which, like other organized crime groups, continues today. The criminal group "Uralmash" was created in the Ordzhonikidze district of the city of Sverdlovsk, where it was located. The founders of the group are considered to be the brothers Grigory and Konstantin Tsyganov. Read the history of this organized crime group here>>> .
OCG "Tambovskie"
The Tambovskie organized crime group is the most famous and odious organized crime group of the 90s. Its leader Kumarin, who is now serving a 24-year sentence in prison, was once the “Night Governor” of St. Petersburg. Many believe that the current business elite were largely associated with this organized crime group. Read more here>>> .
"Solntsevskaya" organized crime group
As a structure, the Solntsevskaya organized crime group was formed in 1988, although its individual “brigades” were created a little earlier. The organized crime group was built by former service sector workers who had prison sentences behind them. This is one of the most famous organized crime groups. Read more here>>> .
Bottoms
Like any other group of people, the criminal group organized itself according to a clear pattern and had a strict hierarchy. According to the hierarchical “position” held, a person earned a certain amount. The grouping begins with youth gangs. “Pawns” were boys aged 15–16 years old; they were engaged in collecting tribute from younger schoolchildren. The so-called “contributions” from each student amounted to about 200-500 rubles at the current exchange rate. At the same time, the “pawns” could not appropriate this money and passed it further along the “ladder”. The next step was the “boys”, whose age ranged from 16 to 25 years. These guys played the role of cannon fodder for people in authority, they were engaged in “protection” for schoolchildren, sold drugs and fought for territory. Often they were the ones who took part in racketeering takeovers.
According to the stories of former members of the Moscow organized crime group, one “boy” earned 4-5 thousand rubles a month - at the current exchange rate. It was normal for each such group to have between 100 and 1000 members. Significantly higher on the career ladder were “foremen”, whose age reached 30 years. They had an organizational function, which consisted of deciding who to “protect” and who would contribute how much to the common fund. They could have from 50 to 400 such “boys” under their command. The leaders of youth gangs collected all the money collected, but they could keep no more than 7% for themselves.
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