There are times in life when a person was sent to prison, and this happened for one reason or another. People are sent to prison for a reason, but for a reason, that is, for some kind of crime. But sometimes it happens when completely innocent people end up there, who, for example, were framed. Such prisoners occur 3 per million; most often real criminals are behind bars. Human life is not insured; sometimes it can present a bad gift from fate, which is a fickle thing. Today you are an ordinary person, but tomorrow you can become a prisoner.
There is a good saying: never say no to money or prison. Therefore, never say that you will not go to prison. Let's first understand what a zone or prison is. And then we’ll talk about prisoners.
Origin of the word "prisoner"
The word “prisoner” came into the Russian language in 1704 from German. Initially it had several meanings. One of them, which has survived to this day, is a person held in custody by a court or police decision. The second meaning of the word is outdated and not used today - small dried fish.
The first written mention of the word was discovered by historians in a decree of Peter the Great of 1718, where it was applied to Swedish prisoners of war. For a long time, the word “prisoner” was used in Russia only by the military department. In its modern meaning, it was first used in the decree of Peter the Great, issued by him in 1816.
This document defined arrest and ordered that in the future all slaves be called prisoners. Before this decree, people in custody were called “cold prisoners.” The last time this word was used was in a royal decree of 1817. Along with the word “convict”, the following expressions were used in everyday life: “prison inmates” and “prison guards.” In the code of Tsar Alexei Mikhailovich, prisoners are called “unhappy.”
Prisoner suits
All prisoners held in closed security institutions are divided into castes or other colors. They determine the position of prisoners in the prison hierarchy, their rights and responsibilities according to concepts. There are some differences between the construction of the hierarchy in women's and men's penitentiary institutions.
Women's prisons and colonies
The assignment of prisoners to one color or another is arbitrary and depends on various factors. Among them:
- age of the prisoner;
- regularity of receiving packages from outside;
- number of walkers, etc.
The most privileged position in women's penitentiary institutions is occupied by “seniors”. They are chosen from among authoritative prisoners. The “elders” are the ones in charge in the cell or barracks. Their candidacy must be agreed upon with the administration of the security institution. This is where the modern female prison hierarchy ends.
Each “elder” has her own retinue of close prisoners who act as her sixes. Women's colonies are reminiscent of the way they organize the lives of prisoners in a hostel. “Seniors” are responsible for discipline in cells or barracks, cleanliness and order in them. They are responsible for preventing conflicts and massacres.
Concepts similar to men’s existed in women’s prisons and colonies in the period from the 30s to the 60s of the last century. During this period, they had their own “thieves”, and “devils”, and “lowlifes”. Female thieves' prisoners differed from male prisoners of this caste in that they did not refuse to work, which is categorically not accepted by thieves' concepts.
In modern women's penitentiary institutions, there is a loyal attitude towards prisoners who cooperate with the administration. This is still not encouraged in men's areas or prisons. In the period from the 30s to the 60s, the suit “mushrooms” was used in the female hierarchy. The prisoners who belonged to it were one step above the “omission”. Untidy, poorly educated, homeless-looking women were classified as this color. They were the subject of constant ridicule from other prisoners.
The young prisoners were considered “peas”. Together with the “mushrooms,” they were forced to clean and clean toilets, and were also assigned other dirty auxiliary work. Just as in men's penitentiary institutions, in women's prisons and colonies it is not customary to sit at the same table, hold hands and use the same utensils with “lowering downs”.
Women have their own ritual of “lowering”, which differs from male traditions. The prisoners they want to perform this ritual on are forced into the corner of a cell or barracks, gagged and shaved bald. After this, all the inhabitants of the cell take turns urinating on the omit. The peculiarity of the “descending” ritual in women’s prisons and colonies is that it is not associated with the lesbian inclinations of the prisoners.
Homosexual relations were never considered a derogatory fact among the prisoners. Such relationships between prisoners have a romantic connotation. The prisoners who lost their feminine features received the nickname “cobble”. Intimate relationships in women's prisons and colonies occur by mutual consent.
Prisoners who have killed or attempted to kill a child are subjected to humiliation and all kinds of abuse in women's penitentiary institutions. This attitude towards child killer prisoners exists in secure institutions even today. Prisoners express a similar attitude to drug addicts. They are periodically beaten and forced to do the dirtiest work, just like the “lowlifes.”
Men's prisons and zones
The “thieves” occupy the top of the male hierarchical prison pyramid. This is the caste of prison and zone “kings”. According to the concept, “thieves” should not work. They keep “black” prisons and zones under them. Entrance to this caste of prisoners is closed to those who, while free, worked in the service sector, were a waiter, a hairdresser, etc.
The suit of "thieves" has a number of privileges that are not available to other prisoners. They keep the prison or zone common fund, distribute the thieves' wealth among other prisoners, resolve disputes and conflict situations, and determine the punishment for guilty prisoners according to concepts.
The main working class in men's penitentiaries are “men”. They make up the absolute majority of the total number of prisoners. “Men” do not participate in criminal disputes, do not shirk work and try not to violate the internal rules and procedures of closed security institutions. They are not repeat criminals.
Prisoners found collaborating with the administration are considered to be the caste of goats. As a rule, these are informers who inform on other prisoners in the hope of getting parole. Prisoners of all stripes try to keep them at a distance. In the “red” zones, they have great power and authority over the rest of the prisoners.
The lowest suits of the male prison hierarchy: “roosters”, “pigs”, “shnyri”, “woolen” and “sixes”. A special lower caste “fuflyzhniki”. Lost gamblers who did not pay their debts are attributed to them.
Decent prisoner
In fact, everything is much simpler than it might seem at first glance. Prisons and camps live according to their own unwritten rules and laws according to the laws of the thieves and criminal world. The rules are very strict, and the punishments are cruel, but fair, to match the society in which they are applied.
Depending on the actions of life and the path traveled, each prisoner and detainee develops a certain status. Also, depending on the involvement in the life of the general (the social life of the criminal world), each prisoner occupies a certain position in society.
Among free people, this position might be called a position or calling. A decent prisoner is a prisoner who has no nasty offenses behind him, lives a proper prison life, and lives up to his status and position. In the camps, only decent prisoners may be allowed to participate in general affairs.
Often in camps and central centers I encountered a phenomenon where the only decent people were considered to be those who considered themselves criminals, denied everything that was Mushroom, and were shaking the regime (either they refused or most likely never worked). In our camp, and I think this is fair, even a simple man could be considered decent, behind whom there is nothing vile or unworthy of humanity.
Prison traditions
The criminal environment has its own laws and traditions, compliance with which is mandatory for every prisoner. They constitute a criminal subculture that has developed over many years, part of which are tattoos, slang, criminal chanson and poetry. Thieves' traditions are passed down from experienced prisoners to newcomers, so they are not lost.
It is known that the legendary thief in law Vasya “Diamond” took an active part in the formation of modern “thieves’ laws”. One part of prison traditions consists of the rules of conduct for prisoners. They talk about what prisoners should do and what they absolutely cannot do.
Prisoners are strictly forbidden to live at the expense of other prisoners, harm them, inform on them and quarrel with them on ethnic grounds. It is forbidden for prisoners to present charges against someone, bypassing a gathering of thieves. The second group of prison traditions regulates the relationship of the “thieves” with society and various castes of prisoners.
Any prisoner must unquestioningly follow the orders of authorities, contribute his share to the common fund and pay off gambling debts. Every first-time entrant, once admitted to a closed security institution, must undergo the “registration” procedure. Most often they beat him, thereby testing him for denunciation. For violating prison rules, prisoners are punished by their own.
Until 1947, punishment was carried out in the form of a public slap on the wrist. Then morals began to become stricter. They began to beat the prisoners and put them on the counter. Serious violation of thieves' laws is punishable by death. The fate of the prisoner is decided at the meeting. The executor of the death penalty is appointed from among the “men”.
He must take full responsibility upon himself. Such performers are called “loaders” or “porters.” To beat the guilty prisoners, prisoners are selected from among young prisoners with gambling debts.
Offended
When I first moved into my first house, naturally I knew nothing about who they were and why they were forced to drag out such a miserable and shameful existence. No, of course, I knew from movies and books that there are people in prison who do not have rights, who replace women for other prisoners and the joys that flow from these replacements. Then I was sure that these people simply had to suffer, since they all had to be rapists, maniacs and pedophiles.
All this turned out to be wrong. There are a huge number of rapists (at least those convicted under this article of the Criminal Code) who are not only not offended, but also engage in common affairs and are considered decent.
And there is another side to the coin. Absolutely decent people and prisoners may accidentally find themselves among the offended (extinguished), commit an act for which the thieves will drive the offended person by force (you’ll be lucky if you get off by simply admitting that you are one, they often also demonstratively rape), and piquant things may also emerge details of your personal life that are unacceptable for a decent person (any kind of oral pleasures and other perversions).
How to properly enter a prisoner's "hut"
In thieves' jargon, a “hut” means a prison cell. How he will have to sit further depends on how the first mover enters it. His actions are closely watched by the rest of the prisoners. When getting to know your cellmates, you shouldn’t get involved with each of them without knowing their color. You can get seriously messed up.
Most often, newcomers are thrown a towel at their feet when entering the “hut”. You need to step on it and wipe the sole of your shoe. Sometimes, instead of a towel, they throw soap at the feet of the first mover. You cannot pick it up from the floor. To pick it up means to bow to the one who threw this soap on the floor. As a greeting, it is better to use the word “hello” rather than its short form “hello” or “hello everyone”. Such greetings will be negatively perceived by other prisoners.
A win-win version of the greeting “hello honest” the emphasis is deliberately placed on the last syllable. Neutral greetings can include the phrases “peace to your home” and “good health.”
What to do if the cops bring a dishonest person into the house?
It is unacceptable for a decent prisoner to sit in the same hut with a dishonest, red or woolly one, or even worse, with an offended one. This article will discuss how decent prisoners should behave if the cops bring wool and other livestock into their hut.
Here we will talk more about the so-called holy places, such as kicha or BUR. In the cells in the central prison, decent people also adhere to similar beliefs, but in view of the fact that in the central prison there is not always room for each category of prisoners, sometimes you have to put up with the fur under the shkonar or the offended near the dalnyak (toilet). The cells of holy places are called that way, because the people kept in them suffer there for their way of life, common deeds and beliefs. Under no circumstances should any fur appear in a decent cell, even on the threshold. If you try to throw a woolly one into the cell, you need to break him (convince him that there is no place for him here and drive him out), if he himself does not catch up and does not break out of the hut. If this does not help, he must be beaten until the cops come running screaming and drag him out of the cell. If the cops ignore the decent one, there is nothing left to do but kill the nit.
Prison folklore
Composing criminal songs and poems is widespread among prisoners. They constitute a separate layer of modern subcultures. In most cases, it is not possible to establish the authorship of criminal songs and poems. The main themes of these works are the craving for freedom, difficult fate, and the romance of a thieve's life. In the poems of the prisoners, rhyme is often “lame,” but this deficiency is more than compensated for by genuine sincerity.
Prisoners love to invent stories about their lives behind bars. They quickly spread throughout the prison environment and over time become legends of thieves. The use of criminal sayings in MLS is also widespread. Each of them has its own special prison subtext.
In “krytki” and prison zones, there is an unspoken ban on the use of certain words. The “correct” prisoner always uses the word “eyewitness” instead of “witness” in conversations. You can’t even say “goodbye.” Only “bye”, “be”, “happily” or “everything”. Instead of “sit down,” the prisoners say “take a seat.”
People behind bars respond to praise “well done” with the phrases: “well done, in Polish, an asshole” or “well done for the cart.” This prisoner taboo on the word “well done” is associated with pre-revolutionary speech. In it they called city cab drivers and village “vaneks”. It was also used in those days in relation to assistant janitors. They had to bow to all the residents of the house passing by them, the yard of which they had to clean.
Put in jail
A prison is a place to serve a sentence for a crime. The prison is controlled by the Federal Penitentiary Service.
A pre-trial detention center is the same prison, prisoners there sit in a cell, walk for an hour a day, and then they are taken out into the street only under escort. The zone is a correctional facility; prisoners live in a room that resembles an army barracks. There may be a shared bedroom for all prisoners, or there may be separate rooms for several people.
In the zone you can go outside for a walk at any time. Most often the yard is locked, but you can ask to be opened. There is a lattice around the yard.
The zone, the prison, is equipped with an economic detachment, which also consists of prisoners. The regime there is a little easier than in the prison itself, but you can only move around under escort.
Famous chansonniers, former prisoners
No one will sing a song about the hard life of a thief better than former prisoners. There are famous chansonniers on the Russian stage who have such a past in their biography. One of them is Ivan Kuchin. He has been a prisoner for 12 years. He went to jail for the first time at the age of 19. He received his sentence for stealing musical equipment from a recreation center. Upon his release, he very quickly went to MLS again for a similar crime.
The famous chansonnier wrote his first song during his transfer to Siberia in 1985. In 1994, Kuchin recorded his first album, which brought him nationwide fame. Since then, he has not stopped his creative and touring activities.
Mikhail Tanich is widely known to lovers of criminal chanson and good poetry. Looking at this songwriter, it’s hard to believe that he served 6 years in Stalin’s Gulag for anti-Soviet statements that can hardly be called such. As a young man, he simply praised the quality of the German autobahn and radio. Tanich served his sentence at a logging site near Solikamsk. In 1990, he created a group performing criminal chanson songs, which he called “Lesopoval”.
The king of chanson, Mikhail Zvezdinsky, became a prisoner at the age of 16. He went to jail for driving a stolen car. True, the hijacker was his friend. The first time he had to serve 10 months. While serving in the army, he received his second sentence for desertion. This time he had to pay for leaving the military unit without permission. The future pop star ran away from his unit to visit his sick mother.
Zvezdinsky received his third term in 1980 for illegal business. This time he was convicted of organizing concerts of pop stars in restaurants in Moscow and the Moscow region. For this, the court sentenced him to 6 years in prison.
TOP 10 thieves in law who participated in the “Bitch” war
In 1946-1956, a brutal, bloody war was fought in Soviet correctional institutions between two groups of prisoners. The first, true “thieves in law” sacredly observed the old “thieves’ code”, which prohibited any form of cooperation with all authorities. The second group, “bitches,” advocated cooperation with the administration of correctional institutions and renunciation of the implementation of criminal rules.
The Thieves' Code prohibited thieves from working or interacting with the state in any way. Those who participated in the Great Patriotic War began to be accused of deviating from the rules and called “bitches.” Seeing a benefit for itself, the administration decided to intensify and use the internecine war to generally reduce the number of thieves. The warring factions were placed intermixed on purpose, and the beatings and massacres that began were not immediately stopped by the camp guards.
Many thieves in law were killed during the “bitch war”, and those who survived told terrible things.
No. 1. “Vasya Brilliant”, 05/18/1928-06/25/1985
Vladimir Babushkin was born in Astrakhan, into a large family. Left without adults, he, as the eldest, at the age of 14, took responsibility for his brothers and sisters. To get food, he mastered the profession of a pickpocket. He was first caught stealing in 1943, but, having received a suspended sentence, nevertheless continued to steal. As a result, after a series of minor sentences, in 1950 he ended up in prison for ten years.
At this time, the “bitch war” was in full swing. Babushkin found himself at the very epicenter of it and chose the side of the “true thieves.” It was then that he was given the nickname “Diamond”, according to one version - for his steadfastness and loyalty to traditions.
“Diamond” has at least three deaths of “bitches.” He killed two with a sharp knife in the chest, and strangled the third. He received his last sentence for setting fire to the barracks of the “shrinkers” through his people.
Babushkin died in the White Swan prison, which was famous among the thieves’ community for its ability to break even the most persistent prisoners. The cause of his death is still not clear, although according to the official version “it was not of a violent nature.”
No. 2. “Vasya Korzh”, 01/23/1919-12/28/1996
“Thief in law” Alexander Kochev was born in Vladivostok and was Bulgarian by origin. The reasons why he first ended up in prison are not known for certain - either because of a woman, or because of theft. However, at some point he ended up in a camp in Kolyma.
In this camp, like in many other Soviet prisons at that time, the “bitch war” was in the midst. Kochev understood that he needed to choose the right side. He fundamentally did not want to cooperate with the prison authorities, so he decided to join the group of “thieves in law” - their position was close to him. But this choice was not easy for him - Kochev constantly found himself in a punishment cell, he was often beaten.
“Vasya Korzh” died of natural causes at the age of 77, remaining faithful to the old thieves’ tradition until his last breath.
No. 3. Vasily Buzulutsky, 01/14/1932
A native of the Krasnodar region, he became a thief in law in 1959. The interesting thing is that no nickname was established for him; everyone called him by his last name. In total, he gave prison forty years of his life.
Buzulutsky, while serving prison terms, found himself in a “bitch war.” He took the side of the “right thieves” and adhered to this position to the end.
An old school thief died from throat cancer.
No. 4. “Mordak”, (unknown).1921-01/20/1999
Vasily Mordakov was born in Saratov. He became a professional pickpocket and first entered the zone in 1937. He was imprisoned for only a year and a half, but he became “in denial” - he refused to work and kept trying to escape. For this, his criminal record was constantly added to.
He took a very direct part in the “bitch war” that was going on at that time. One day, when he was being transported to prison after another escape, a thief looking after the transport approached him and asked him to carry several shivs. Everyone knew that the “bitches” in the zone were well armed, and the “thieves” arriving there went against them bare-handed. Mordakov agreed and managed to carry the shivs on himself.
Immediately after their arrival, the convoy drove them to the bathhouse to meet the crowd of “bitches”. A massacre broke out, before which “Mordak” managed to distribute the stolen shivs to the thieves. Vasily himself was hit on the head with a tractor chain, disfiguring his face.
After his release, he returned to Saratov, where he became an arbitrator for the criminal community. He was often contacted on various issues. He died of a heart attack, just shy of eighty years old.
No. 5. "Cherkas", 01.01.1924-06.09.1990 (06.09.1996)
Anatoly Cherkasov was involved in thefts from his youth, then moved on to a more serious business - robbery. By 1944, he had served five years in prison. Deciding that he could not remain on the sidelines while the Nazis conquered the country, he joined the penal battalion and showed courage. The command learned about his exploits, for which he was awarded the Order of Glory and transferred to a simple military unit.
After the war in 1946, he was caught stealing, it is possible that on purpose - he was in a hurry to support his friends at the front who found themselves in the “bitch war” on the side of the “bitches”. He united supporters around himself and managed to turn the tide of the “bitch war” in their favor. During the confrontation, many thieves in law were killed, which only played into the hands of the prison authorities. In the 50s, at thieves’ gatherings, it was decided to withdraw all claims against front-line thieves.
It is Anatoly Cherkasov who is called the “father of racketeering” - at one of the meetings he suggested that thieves should move away from robberies and robberies, and start protecting speculators and underground entrepreneurs. And for security, you can pay extra to the police. This scheme was accepted and enthusiastically implemented.
The exact date of Cherkasov’s death is unknown, as is the place of his burial. Different sources name different years - 1990, 1996 and even 1979. Everyone agrees that he died a natural death.
No. 6. Nikolai Volkov (“Koba”) 05/21/1931-1988
A native of the Moscow region, an influential thief in law, “Koba” lived a rich life. He changed a huge number of prisons and camps, where he more than once crossed paths with the most respected crime bosses. Volkov received his first sentence at the age of seventeen, and immediately in prison began to show himself as an extremely negative prisoner. He didn't work and refused to obey orders. The sentences came one after another - he was tried for sabotage, for participating in mass riots.
“Koba found himself in the thick of a bitch war. He defended his honor and remained a true “thief”, despite all the terrible things that were happening before his eyes. The jailers deliberately pitted “thieves” and “bitches” against each other. All those who arrived were forced to renounce their identity as thieves. The administration deliberately armed one of the parties so that they would successfully destroy the real “thieves in law.”
“Koba” was released only in 1983, and died five years later. A faithful camp comrade and comrade in the bitch war, “Vasya Korzh,” came to bury him.
No. 7. Valery Khaniev (“Valka Ingush”) .1927-03/19/1974
The classic thief in law must live by theft. Such was Khaniev, born in Astrakhan in 1927. Having received ten years in prison in 1949 under a special decree on increasing liability for theft, the authority began his long journey through Soviet camps.
Khaniev took a direct part in the unfolding bloody confrontation between the “thieves” and the “thieves.” They destroyed each other with everything they could get their hands on. And while the camp administrations allowed those they recruited to have knives and other weapons, the “thieves” often fought back with what they could find. Nails, sharpening points, pieces of reinforcement. People inflicted terrible injuries on each other. For participation in mass riots, Khaniev received an additional ten years in 1950, and another eleven were added a year later for refusing to work. The authority continued to defend the “thieves”, no matter what.
Khaniev never managed to be released. In 1974, he was stabbed to death in one of the forced labor camps.
No. 8. Valiko Samushiya (“Valiko”) 08/16/1928-07/25/1982
The authoritative Sukhumi “thief” was born in 1928, and first went to prison in 1950, for eight years, for murder. He showed himself to be in “denial,” did not follow orders, and refused to go to work.
He went to prison right in the middle of the bitch war. “Valiko” defended the “thief”, proving to others that he was a true “thief” and would remain so. In 1951, he was tried for causing grievous bodily harm, adding another nine years to his sentence. In 1955, the authority fled and received another ten years for escaping.
Samushiya was released in the late 60s. However, at the end of the 70s he again found himself in prison and never saw his free will again. In 1982, Valiko died in a prison hospital.
No. 9. Givi Dzhidzheishvili (“Givi Kolyma”) 01/10/1928-05/19/2000
The Sukhumi “thief” was born in 1928. From a young age he became involved in criminal activities, and at the age of twenty he was crowned king. In 1949, he came under a decree increasing liability for theft of property and received an impressive ten years. This is how his story of being in Soviet camps began.
After being sent to the camp, he escaped, but was caught and sentenced to twenty years. And subsequently, under the article for participation in mass riots, he twice received the death penalty - a maximum sentence of twenty-five years. The authorities “correctly” called the bloody showdowns that took place in the camps and zones mass unrest. The “bitches” who were condoned by the prison administration dealt with those who honored the “thieves’ concepts.” In this fight for thieves’ ideals, “Givi Kolyma” put down at least a dozen “bitches.”
The authority gave more than thirty years to prison. His life's journey ended in Tolyatti, where he lived away from the big showdowns over the division of spheres of influence over big business. He was shot by unknown killers.
No. 10. Vakhtang Dartsmelidze (“Vakho Potisky”) 12/11/1929-11/01/1997
Originally from Poti, the Georgian “thief” born in 1929 joined the thieves’ movement from his youth and was crowned king. He always took an active part in thieves' affairs. In 1948, he was sentenced for hooliganism, then more sentences fell on him and the authority was recognized as a particularly dangerous repeat offender.
“Vakho” went through Soviet camps and a bitter war, keeping its name. He was a strong and respected authority, and he stopped many unworthy people. During the terrible confrontation, he did not give in to the fact that he betrayed the “thieves’ concepts.” Vakho tied the fallen trees to the trees and cut them with a saw. Dartsmelidze went through the whole bitch war with dignity.
The authority served out its last term in 1986. After that he moved to Moscow, and in 1997 he died of lung cancer.
