Putin and the "brotherhood": Podolsk Organized Crime Group

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In the aggressor country, gangsters from the 1990s have not yet retired.

In the 1990s, the "Podolsk gang" would entomb their enemies in concrete, shoot them with rifles on the streets, and hang them in prison. Today, leaders of the organized crime group (OCG) are esteemed businessmen owning "Novikov" restaurants in Ibiza, deputies in party leadership positions, and "philanthropists" officially sponsoring world boxing champions and paratroopers. The The Insider material describes a brief history of the rise of the Podolsk OCG and explains its connections with Zyuganov, Deripaska, and Vladimir Putin.

Pistols, yachts, and a Duma mandate

On December 14, 2020, Spanish police conducted 18 searches and arrested 23 people as part of Operation "Testudo" (Latin for "turtle," a defensive formation of ancient Roman infantry) against a group laundering money of questionable origin from the former USSR and several other countries in Spain. During the searches, over ten firearms (from pistols to a sniper rifle), thousands of rounds of ammunition, 300 thousand euros in cash, diamonds, and luxury cars were confiscated. Numerous accounts, including cryptocurrency ones, were blocked, according to the Spanish Ministry of the Interior.

On the Spanish Ministry of the Interior’s website, the operation is called the "largest in the last ten years" due to the "high social status" of the suspects. The investigation lasted seven years. In the last two years, the suspects’ phones were tapped. The ministry’s statement indicates that the detainees could have bribed Spanish officials and carried out hacker attacks.

According to the criminal case materials, the arrested individuals laundered money for "leaders of the criminal world," buying land, villas, restaurants, and yachts for them. One of the charges was bribing Spanish officials to expedite registration formalities. Among the clients of the arrested money launderers, according to Spanish law enforcement, were Podolsk residents—owner of several shopping centers and member of the General Council of "Business Russia" Maxim Lalakin and the first deputy chairman of the State Duma committee on physical culture and sports Boris Ivanyuzhenkov.

Boris Ivanyuzhenkov (aka "Rotan") to the right of Zyuganov

Maxim is the son of Sergey Lalakin, also known as "Luchok," a hero of the 1990s criminal chronicles, where he appeared as the leader of the legendary Podolsk OCG. Now Sergey Lalakin positions himself as a philanthropist.

Boris Ivanyuzhenkov was known in old criminal chronicles as "Rotan." In 1999, Rotan became Russia’s first-ever Minister of Sports, and he is currently a State Duma deputy from the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF). "Rotan" has been a State Duma deputy for the third time, and during his second term, he was involved in a lawsuit with the CPRF: the Zyuganovites wanted to give the State Duma seat to ex-presidential candidate Pavel Grudinin. Ivanyuzhenkov’s relations with the party normalized, and in the previous State Duma, he was the first deputy chairman of the transport and construction committee from the CPRF. However, in this position, he decided nothing, as the deputy position in Duma committees is usually given to the Zyuganovites but holds only representational weight. Despite serving in three Duma convocations, Ivanyuzhenkov never spoke at sessions, although during his second deputation, he officially attended 100% of the lower house sessions.

Everything is going well for the Podolsk people not only in Russia but also in Spain (at least, it was until the latest arrests). According to the case materials, Podolsk money in Spain was laundered through luxury restaurants and nightclubs.

Assets of the "Podolsk gang"—Novikov’s restaurants and Ibiza’s largest nightclub

The Spanish criminal case mentions Russian businessmen Mikhail Danilov and Anton Pinskiy, who have achieved great success in Moscow’s night club industry. Spanish investigators believe Danilov is directly connected with two "leaders of the Podolsk criminal syndicate Boris Ivanyuzhenkov and Maxim Lalakin" and invested their funds.
Law enforcement established that Danilov traveled to Spain with Levan Jangveladze, the brother and assistant of one of the most influential thieves-in-law Merab Jangveladze (also known as "Merab Sukhumsky"). According to Spanish law enforcement, Merab Jangveladze lives in Podolsk.

Danilov had "regular phone conversations" with Ivanyuzhenkov and traveled to Ibiza with Lalakin Jr. On October 27, 2017, Danilov flew to Ibiza with Maxim Lalakin and Vasily Khristoforov, a Nizhny Novgorod thief-in-law nicknamed "Vasya Voskres." Lalakin and Danilov arrived together on a private plane and left together three days later, staying in the same hotel booked by the same operator. The Spaniards consider this as "meetings to discuss joint criminal interests," discussing "influences sphere delimitation." Almost a year later, from July 29 to August 3, 2018, "Vasya Voskres" was seen in Ibiza on the same dates as Maxim Lalakin, but this time, Danilov was not with them.

It was through the efforts of Danilov and Pinskiy that the company "Novikov Isla S.L." appeared in Spain, through which the Avocado queen restaurant was opened in Ibiza. According to the Spanish Ministry of the Interior, the "Podolsk gang" invested no less than three million euros into this restaurant, after which transactions leading to law enforcement suspicions occurred on the restaurant’s account.

Avocado queen in Ibiza, as well as the restaurant under the same brand in Moscow at Patriarch Ponds, belong to the famous Novikov Group premium restaurant network. Previously, nothing was known about restaurateur Arkady Novikov’s connections with authoritative people from Podolsk. Novikov Group’s PR department declined to answer journalists’ questions about whether Maxim Lalakin is a partner of the company. Arkadiy Novikov neither confirmed nor denied any partnership relations with the Lalakin family.

Spanish investigators believe the "Podolsk gang" was also preparing to purchase "Bora Bora," the largest nightclub in Ibiza.

Danilov’s connection with Rotan (Ivanyuzhenkov) is confirmed by several wiretaps. Here, for example, is a conversation from April 17, 2017, between the Russians Nikolai Mityurev and Mikhail Zhizhin, detained in Spain for this case.

Mikhail Zhizhin: - Was he with Borya yesterday?

Nikolai Mityurev: - With whom? With Borya?

Mikhail Zhizhin: - Borya Ivanyuzhenkov, the big one.

Nikolai Mityurev: - Yes, yes, a big man.

Mikhail Zhizhin: - Boris Viktorovich.

Nikolai Mityurev: - Yes, yes, I understand that this is a respected man.

Mikhail Zhizhin: - Boris Viktorovich, he’s among them, he’s ... Zyaba-zyaba.

Nikolai Mityurev: - I understand, I understand.

Mikhail Zhizhin: - The second person in the "Podolsk gang."

Nikolai Mityurev: - I understand, interesting, interesting. I understood that all of them were like that.

And here’s a recording from June 26, 2017, Mikhail Danilov calls Boris Ivanyuzhenkov. Both use Russian numbers, but Danilov is in Ibiza, and the phone is tapped:

Danilov: - Boris Viktorovich?

Ivanyuzhenkov: - How are you? Where are you? Alive, ***?

Danilov: - Alive, ***, don’t be mad, I’m in Ibiza.

Ivanyuzhenkov: - I already know. Tell me one thing.

Danilov: - About the 74 thousand?

Ivanyuzhenkov: - No, not about that. Remember, you mentioned a company, "Gazprom," ... "Gazprom Moscow" or whatever... What’s the surname of the person there?

Danilov: - Fedorov.

Ivanyuzhenkov: - And what’s the exact name of the company?

Danilov: - "Gazpromenergoholding."

Ivanyuzhenkov: - Yes, exactly. All right, bye for now.

In "Gazpromenergoholding," there are two top managers named Fedorov— the production director and the general director. It’s unclear what specific joint business projects the Spanish defendants and Ivanyuzhenkov had, but their interaction was clearly not episodic.

Lalakin Jr. told the publication that he has no business with Ivanyuzhenkov: "I never had any conflicts with the law, especially in Spain. Spanish law enforcement has no claims against me and cannot have. This question has been formulated by you based on false information from internet resources, where my surname is mentioned on unclear grounds with the aim of discreditation. If there were any questions from the Spanish authorities towards me, I think they would have asked long ago, but there are none, and cannot be. Ivanyuzhenkov is an acquaintance, I rarely communicate with him, upon meetings. I last saw him a year ago, at Alexander Karelin’s birthday, and talked to him then. I don’t have any business with Boris Viktorovich."

The fact that the "Luchok" and "Rotan" families remain closely connected today is confirmed not only by property registries. For example, on the VKontakte page of Lalakin’s younger son, Igor, there’s a photo with Artyom Ivanyuzhenkov, the younger son of Boris. It seems to mimic a photo from the heyday of the Podolsk OCG, where "Luchok" and "Rotan" pose together.

The rise of the Podolsk OCG

The Podolsk organized criminal group was one of the most serious and dangerous in Russia in the 90s. "In the post-Soviet period [in the 1990s], there were four groups— the Solntsevskaya, Izmailovskaya, Chechens, and Podolskaya. All others were subordinate to one of these groups," said Leonid Roitman, a former Solntsevskaya authority who was released from an American prison in 2014.

The Podolsk OCG appeared at the end of the 80s, was headed by Sergey Lalakin in the 90s, and by 1995, at least 20 murders (only those known to law enforcement) were attributed to this group. Lalakin received the nickname "Luchok" while still in middle school. After finishing a vocational school, he served in the airborne troops and later worked as a butcher. From the late 80s, Luchok and his friends engaged in "business": making money through shell games and "dolls." Gradually, the gangs they created pushed out the old thief elite—pickpockets—from "power" in Podolsk.

One of "Kommersant" publications offers a different version of the criminal leader’s nickname origin—allegedly, he was called "Luchok" (Onion) because he worked at a vegetable base before the perestroika. According to Sergey Lalakin himself, he never worked as a butcher or at a vegetable base but went to a factory after the army. Sergey Lalakin claims to have been ranked first in boxing as a youth.

A source in The Insider who was a former participant of the Podolsk OCG recounts that he trained with Lalakin Sr. and that the latter indeed demonstrated very good boxing skills. According to the source, in the 90s, Podolsk gangsters met approximately once a week in a gym located in the nearby town of Shcherbinka, in the area of the railway circle. There, they trained and communicated: "Russian nationalism was cultivated, sobriety was encouraged: at any moment one had to be ready to go somewhere and, if necessary, shoot. Living in marriage was considered better than spending time with prostitutes. Drug trafficking was suppressed."

According to him, local taxi drivers played a significant role in the development of the Podolsk OCG. For example, Stanislav Kultin, a Podolsk killer, involved in the investigation of 13 murders, worked as a taxi driver. Estimates of the Podolsk OCG’s numbers vary. "Kommersant" mentioned a figure of 2.5 thousand people. An Insider source from the FSB disagrees: "We identified 457 Podolsk members. The Solntsevskaya surpassed two and a half thousand, but there was a lot of rabble among them. The ’Podol’... it was the best-organized group. The Podolsk also allied with the Izmailovskaya."

A former participant in the Podolsk group considers this figure exaggerated: he talks about 150-200 gangsters from Podolsk.

"Someone spread rumors about [Sergey Lalakin]. And this snowballed. They hung a sign, a stigma. We even met, discussed how to remove it. But then we realized: let it be as it is. The main thing is to conduct business," Boris Ivanyuzhenkov told Kommersant in August 1999. Former crime reporter and then chief editor of that newspaper, Mikhail Mihailin, confirmed that Sergey Lalakin never tried to challenge Kommersant’s publications about himself in court.

In a conversation with reporters, Lalakin Jr. stated that he knew nothing about the criminal affairs of his father and "does not interfere with his father’s affairs": "The reason for mentioning me personally and my father in some yellow publications is apparent: someone wants to discredit us in the eyes of the public, business partners, including foreign ones, attract the attention of law enforcement agencies with the aim of creating unnecessary and unjustified attention, just to cause inconvenience. I never tried to find out how my father created his business; all businessmen have their own approach to conducting business, different perspectives on solving tasks and attracting investments, finding partners. I don’t meddle and haven’t meddled in my father’s affairs, and he doesn’t interfere in mine. I consider this right. Various versions of the business creation by my father mentioned on the internet, as you say, are misinformation, lies coming from unclear, unchecked anonymous sources. The reason, I believe, is jealousy, dissatisfaction, some old grievances from people who didn’t get their possible benefits. You know, from personal experience I can say when you revolve in the business community, it is challenging to avoid these factors."

It should be noted that, of course, far from "yellow editions" wrote about the connection of Sergey Lalakin with the Podolsk OCG. In the 1990s, Kommersant dedicated about two dozen publications to the activities of the "Podolsk gang", as did "Absolutely Secret" (when it was run by Artem Borovik) and many other major media.

«The head of Podolsk was hanged for ceasing to follow the orders of the organized crime group»

An interlocutor from the organized crime group notes that a key stage in the expansion of the «Podolsk» influence was the capture of the service center on Varshavskoye Highway in 1993-1994. «In the early ’90s, it was the only place in Moscow where you could repair a car,» he recalls. In the struggle for the service center, several members of the Ingush organized crime group that had previously controlled it were killed. The interlocutor of The Insider notes that in the 1990s, the main struggle among gangsters was for large enterprises - that was where the main opportunities for enrichment opened. Trade and public catering were convenient for legalizing income.

«Suddenly, we open a Chinese restaurant and a new gaming hall. Both the machines and the restaurant were almost without visitors, but they worked: it was known that the Podolsk people conducted their money through them,» recalls a The Insider interlocutor involved in the management of Troitsk. In the ’90s, the city of Troitsk was part of the Podolsk district, now it’s New Moscow.

«Kommersant» wrote in 1996: «[The Podolsk organized crime group] specializes in controlling enterprises engaged in export-import operations, auto business, housing construction, and oil refining. The sphere of Podolsk influence is not limited to the Moscow region. It is known, for example, that the «power ministers» of Luchok - the Vorshev brothers - have their own brigades in Urengoy and Kyiv. [...] According to RUOP, Lalakin is friends with Yaponchik, so a significant part of the Podolsk «obschak» is placed in American banks. [...]. Luchok did not overlook the Podolsk police: it is said that the forged decorative grille in front of the facade of the Podolsk Department of Internal Affairs was built with his money».

Today, Igor and Sergey Vorshevs, along with Sergey Lalakin, are co-founders of the «Heritage» charitable foundation, also with Igor Vorshev (aka «Garik») Lalakin Sr. owns shares in «Elektroff» and the IEK, large manufacturers of electrical equipment based in Podolsk. Both companies and both Lalakin and Vorshev own approximately 10% of the shares.

The formation of a single criminal group was accompanied by bloody infighting: «The first victim among the Podolsk criminal authorities was the repeatedly convicted felon Sergey Fedyaev (Psych), who united „blues“ convicted criminals), to which Luchok himself, they say, looks down on with disdain. Psych fully justified his nickname, constantly starting senseless conflicts with anyone and posed a potential threat to Luchok. He was shot dead with fire from two machine guns and a pistol in August 1992 near the „Bistro“ cafe on the Moscow-Serpukhov highway, where he arrived „for an arrow.“ The headless and half-burnt body of Psych was found a day later near one of the Podolsk villages. Psych’s wounded driver, Andrey Khromov (Bubble), managed to escape and get to the hospital, where he died five days later. Before his death, he managed to report that three people were shooting at them, two of whom were Podolsk authorities and friends of Luchok. [...] the criminal case was suspended».

Soon new «blue» leaders went to the afterlife: «It was known that it was Roman [Alexander Romanov] at the end of 1992 who shot one of the Podolsk brigade leaders Anatoly Strelyuk at the Podolsk market, who was Luchok’s friend (at one time, they played thimbles together). The conflict ended simply: on March 10, 1993, Romanov was shot dead in his Mercedes with a driver from two automatic rifles in Podolsk in broad daylight. Immediately after the nine-day memorial for Romanov, Sobol [Nikolay Sobolev] also disappeared. His Ford with open doors and the key in the ignition was found near the same cafe where Psych died on the morning of March 19. An hour later, someone set the car on fire. Sobol’s decayed body was fished out of the [river] Pachra in the Domodedovo district in May. In Sobol’s pocket were found notes with spells against enemies and some car numbers. As Sobol’s sister told the investigation, shortly before her brother’s disappearance, a Zhiguli with one of these numbers chased their car. According to the investigation, the car belonged to one Moscow company controlled by the Podolsk brigade.»

The investigation into the criminal cases initiated on the facts of the deaths of Romanov and Sobol was soon suspended. In Chekhov, a neighboring Podolsk suburb, the investigation into the mid-1990s murder of the Korchagin brothers’ group members was recently resumed: local gangsters opposed the «Podolsk», several of whose bodies were found encased in concrete.

«[Former head of Podolsk Alexander] Fokin was hanged [in 2005] in the Serpukhov prison cell because he stopped following the [organized crime group]’s orders. The head of the Chekhov district, Gennady Nedoseka, was also very afraid of the Podolsk people. He burned in his car [in 2004]», — said The Insider former head of the Serpukhov district of the Moscow region Alexander Shestun, who, while in the pre-trial detention center, answered The Insider’s questions through a lawyer. He was sentenced to 15 years, and Shestun claims that a case was opened against him in connection with his conflict with the Podolsk organized crime group.

The Podolsk group was well-armed: «On May 14 [1996], officers of the Moscow Criminal Investigation Department, in cooperation with FSB operatives and the Moscow regional police, liquidated two weapons depots of the Podolsk-Sherbinsk criminal group. 25 automatic and machine guns, pistols, grenades, several boxes of cartridges, and 36 kg of explosives were seized. [...] The criminal investigators came across the Podolsk bandits during the murder investigations in the capital. [...] The first operation group visited the village Novomoskovsk. There, in the apartment of the 30-year-old Podolsk gang member Alexei Pyatkov, they found 11 automatic rifles and 11 Kalashnikov machine guns, 10 silencers for them, 89 grenades, 40 fuses, and 14 grenade launchers. Besides, 31 kg of plastic explosive and 5 kg of TNT were stored in Pyatkov’s apartment. [...] The second group simultaneously searched the house of 33-year-old Vladimir Logashov, living in the factory named after May 1. A substantial arsenal was also found in the basement of this house: five pistols, three machine guns, an SKS carbine, a pump-action shotgun, six boxes of 5.45 caliber cartridges, and 16 loaded machine gun belts. [...] As a result of the operation, six people [...] were arrested. During the detention, one of the bandits resisted and was slightly wounded.»

In the ’90s publications, there are many stories of how detainees, including for a series of murders, were released after interventions by deputies, Prosecutor General’s Office employees, and church officials - like other gangsters of the ’90s, the «Podolsk» financed church restoration.

The bandits were not afraid to fight back: «In 1992, the „authority“ Fidel organized the murder of MUR captain Andrey Galperin, who had infiltrated this brigade. Fidel’s bandits beat the operative to death, breaking all his bones, and threw the body in a dump. That time several people were detained. Fidel himself did not give up alive. He threw grenades at the policemen, killing two operatives, but also got mortal wounds himself.»

«In the ’90s, I did not avoid shakedowns from organized crime groups of all kinds. There were many assassination attempts on me: exploded with a grenade, shot with a pistol, and hit by a 600th Mercedes. I have two gunshot wounds to the head, a concussion from an F-1 grenade explosion, suffered a severe traumatic brain injury, and my nose was broken more than five times. All these attacks were committed by groups from Podolsk. All participants in the attacks were later found. Some of them were arrested; most of them died», — Alexander Shestun said in court about how he started doing business in Serpukhov.

Alexander Shestun

Ending the squabbles

The gangster life in Podolsk began to decline in 1998 when, under unclear circumstances, 28-year-old Mikhail “Mephodiy” Kalugin was shot dead in the city police department building. A series of articles in "Kommersant" is dedicated to Mephody.

“He was a complicated man,” Podolsk leaders remember Mephodiy. “He obeyed for only the first two days. Then, after watching action movies, he’d start dragging businessmen to abandoned factories and ‘working’ on them. Podolsk breathed freely in the summer of 1996. Mephody broke the nose of a driver who got in his way and received seven months for hooliganism. It was his first and only sentence.”

Mephodiy’s unpredictability and aggressiveness were attributed by gangsters to his drug addiction. Kalugin installed police sirens on his Volvo and had a fake OMON captain ID.

"Mephodiy calls himself Lalakin’s nephew (whether this is true is unknown). Their cottages outside Podolsk are next to each other. [...] He leads and controls all youth brigades in the city (about 100 people) and recruits new fighters into them. People are selected for the brigades from the pupils of the Podolsk sports base, created and maintained with the funds of the group and personally by Lalakin. As the RUOP officers say, Mephodiy does not experience a shortage of personnel. [...] After serving in the late ’80s in Germany in an airborne assault brigade and mastering all types of small arms, he returned to his native Podolsk. Initially planning to join the French Foreign Legion, and when that didn’t work out, he led a brigade of racketeers. Mephodiy actively participated in the fight against Caucasians and is now proud that there are none in Podolsk.”

“Mephodiy completely lost it. A traffic policeman stops him, and he takes the gun away from the policeman and throws it away… We arranged with the leadership of the regional GUVD to hide the family of the investigator who shot Mephodiy,” recalls a FSB source.

A source from a criminal group tells The Insider that when Mephodiy was shot in the city police department building, the "elders" told the young gangsters not to seek revenge on law enforcement for what had happened.

Some Podolsk fighters have stayed together forever, they have their own alley in section 45 of the Kotlyakovskoe Cemetery.

Podolsk authorities Boris Movchan and Anatoliy Nikishin were gunned down in a jeep with automatic fire in May 1997 in Moscow near the Tsaritsyno Hotel. Near their graves are similar tombstones of strong young men whose lives were cut short in the late 1990s and early 2000s.

The Podolsk gang become officials

Strengthening their position in the city and starting to earn seriously, just like other large criminal groups, the “Podolsk” began engaging in social initiatives. Their main offspring is the sports club “Vityaz,” opened in 1996. The focus was on hockey, football, tennis, and martial arts. Boxers Denis Lebedev and Alexander Povetkin, mixed martial arts fighter Sergey Kharitonov, are frequent guests at “Podolsk” events. In the ’90s, “Vityaz” united 29 sports, and training for thousands of children was conducted free of charge.

“Luchok” with world boxing champions Alexander Povetkin and Denis Lebedev

Branches of “Vityaz” are opened outside of Podolsk: usually where the community has business partners. In the ’90s, it was the largest private sports club in the country. In conjunction with “Vityaz,” a private Podolsk social-sports institute was opened, where athletes can receive higher education. The head of “Vityaz” and the social-sports institute, Boris “Rotan” Ivanyuzhenkov, was a former wrestler who performed alongside Alexander Karelin.

In 1999, a Ministry of Sports was created to host the 2000 World Hockey Championship in Russia. Thus, 33-year-old Ivanyuzhenkov became Russia’s first-ever Minister of Sports.

His criminal background was known: for example, the newspaper “Strictly Confidential” published a piece entitled “Position – Minister, Operational Category – Authority,” which provided data that Ivanyuzhenkov spent several months in a pre-trial detention center on charges of participating in a gang rape and had a case opened against him for arms possession. Ivanyuzhenkov was twice a defendant in criminal cases involving shootings with human casualties. None of the cases ended in a conviction for Ivanyuzhenkov.

While in the ministerial position, Ivanyuzhenkov, as the media wrote, was detained on the US border: he was also listed as a criminal authority in America. Ivanyuzhenkov was allowed into the States only after diplomatic negotiations.

While preparing for the World Hockey Championship, “Rotan” lobbied for part of the games to be moved to the newly built “Vityaz” ice palace, but Podolsk wasn’t allowed to host the world competition. Ivanyuzhenkov was dismissed already in 2000, not because of his gangster background, but due to Russia’s failure in the hockey championship. Ivanyuzhenkov remained a major sports functionary: at different times, he worked in the leadership of wrestling, boxing, and hockey federations.

Boris Ivanyuzhenkov owns 30% of the Podolsk shopping mall “Gallery” (since Ivanyuzhenkov is a State Duma deputy, shares are in trust management). His wife and older son own 35% of the Central Market of Podolsk. On the State Duma website, Ivanyuzhenkov reported that in 2019 and 2020, he owned a 47-square-meter apartment and had an official income of about 30 million rubles per year. Boris Ivanyuzhenkov did not disclose his wife’s income in the declaration published on the State Duma website.

“He’s a State Duma deputy, he’s been checked numerous times!” responded CPRF press secretary Alexander Yushchenko to The Insider’s request for an interview with Boris Ivanyuzhenkov.

Podolsk gangsters become businessmen

Unlike “Rotan,” “Luchok” never aimed for politics. Elder Lalakin (officially) lives off stock income, and his son handles the business. Maxim Lalakin heads the company Styness: it builds and manages properties in the Moscow region: four shopping centers and a large fitness center in Podolsk, one shopping center in Zhukovskiy and one in Rublevka, a restaurant complex on Novorizhskoye Highway. Maxim categorically denies using his father’s money, claiming he simply borrowed the start-up capital:

“Styness was created by me based on attracted investments, borrowed funds, including bank loans. I have never used my father’s money in my business because I consider it the wrong path. You need to grow and develop independently, especially with various financial instruments available in the market. Yes, of course, it is more difficult and takes longer this way, but you achieve the desired result on your own without anyone’s help, and in the end, it pays off,” stated Maxim Lalakin.

Among Maxim Lalakin’s business partners is Svetlana Gurtovenko (with her, Maxim has 50% in Bazar shopping center on Rublevka). Gurtovenko is the CEO of the development corporation of Mikhail Cherkasov, one of the leaders of the Judo Federation and a partner of the Rottenbergs.

In several companies, Maxim Lalakin’s partner is Alexei Khimikus, CEO of Samara’s Pipe Construction company. The “Podolsk” have many connections with Samara. In 2015, the Samara police were headed by (retired in 2017) General Sergey Solodovnikov, former head of the Podolsk police department. There are rumors in Podolsk that “Luchok” is Solodovnikov’s godfather.

“Regarding [Sergei] Lalakin, I do know him personally. He is a philanthropist. And it’s even funny to hear that he is a criminal and heads a gang. If he violated the law, he should have been jailed 25 years ago. Now he’s an honorary citizen of Podolsk, awarded state decorations,” Solodovnikov replied to the media’s questions about Luchok.

Blogger Oleg Ivanets, who writes about the criminal life in Samara, was recently released from a colony himself: he was convicted on extortion charges from one of the investigation’s heroes.

“With the arrival of ‘Solod’ in Samara, they started busting the gang controlled by the Solntsevskaya [gangsters]. The gangsters said: we’ll soon be waiting for the ‘Podolsk.’ The gang, which held half of the region, was ultimately defeated. But ‘Solod’ also flew away, so it’s hard to tell [who, in the end, won]... ‘Solod’ closed me down for once mentioning his friendship with ‘Luchok’,” Ivanets told.

Journalists from the Samara publication “Another City,” disheartened by the weak results of “Wings of the Soviets,” published an investigation into the involvement of Luchok’s friends in managing the Samara football club. The investigation mentions enterprises extracting sand and gravel in the Leningrad region, linked to the Podolsk.

In the spring of 2020, at the height of the coronavirus first wave, the betting company “Fonbet” was listed among the companies applying for state support. After the disclosure, “Fonbet” was controversially removed from the list. Media reported that state support was lobbied by the “Podolsk.” Lalakin Jr. denies this:

“As I have repeatedly stated in several other media outlets, neither my nor my father’s business is connected with any betting, including sports betting. I used to own a share in ‘Fonbet,’ which I sold long ago and no longer have anything to do with betting,” Maxim Lalakin told The Insider.

One of the co-owners of “Fonbet” is Stanislav Magomedov, who, together with Maxim Lalakin, owns the bath complex “Usadba Banya” in Rublevka. According to The Bell, most shares of “Fonbet” are registered to a Cypriot offshore company, whose ultimate beneficiary is unknown.

At various times, Maxim Lalakin had property in Europe — in the UK, Latvia, Estonia. But Cyprus connects Maxim significantly. According to “Spark,” most of Maxim’s companies are now registered in his name, but until recently, companies were registered to a group of offshore entities, mainly Cypriot.

The Lalikins previously unsuccessfully tried to obtain a residence permit in Estonia. Ultimately, as The Insider found, they managed to become EU citizens through Cyprus. Information about people applying for citizenship is considered public in Cyprus. In the local newspaper Αλήθεια (translated from Greek as truth), announcements were published stating that Maxim applied for citizenship in 2017, and his wife Anna in 2018. Their addresses in Limassol were also indicated in the Cypriot “Truth.” While Maxim indicated an apartment in a relatively modest residential complex, Anna was listed as having property in a rather expensive settlement.

In 2020, Luxembourg created a public register of owners registered in this state-owned company. There was found Maxim Lalakin with the company Axiom Property, which has the right to conduct real estate transactions in Luxembourg and France. According to the French newspaper Le Monde, the company has an investment of 28 million euros. The Insider received an excerpt with the company’s data: it is registered to Maxim and his wife Anna. The Luxembourg excerpt indicates that both Maxim and Anna have dual citizenship — Russian and Cypriot.

Maxim Lalakin’s wife, Anna, was on the cover of L’Officiel Central Asia. Their daughters appear in photos from teenage parties by Tatler.

Godfather in Deripaska’s family

Another reputable “businessman” from the “Podolsk” group is Sergey Popov (also known as “Pop”), the godfather of one of the children of oligarch Oleg Deripaska. In the 1990s, “Kommersant” also named “Pop” as one of the leaders of the "Podolsk" group; currently, he owns a small construction company implementing a project on Ostozhenka. According to The Insider’s source, Popov’s company is also preparing to build another shopping center, which Maxim Lalaki’s company, Styness, plans to open in Podolsk. At the time of publication, Maxim Lalaki did not respond to The Insider’s question on whether he collaborates with Popov.

Previously, Sergey Popov and Maxim Lalaki jointly sponsored the Podolsk Tennis Academy. In the mid-2010s, Maxim Lalaki had projects worth several million euros in Latvia: he invested in the revival of the Soviet-era football club “Torpedo Riga” and was a co-owner of the elite residential complex ADMIRĀĻU OSTA in Jurmala. Businessmen from Podolsk are still involved in managing the Jurmala residential complex: Luchok was a regular attendee at the “New Wave” pop festival when it was held in Jurmala. One of Maxim Lalaki’s partners in “Torpedo Riga” (registration data obtained by The Insider) was an Andrey Popov — the same name as Sergey Popov’s son.

“I never had any business interests in Latvia and never tried to establish serious business projects there! At one time, my interests in this state were expressed in obtaining a residence permit and nothing more!” stated Maxim Lalaki.

Radik “Dragon” Yusupov, a well-known authority from Kazan and a figure in homicide criminal cases (now free), is Popov Senior’s business partner (legal entities “Idil Development” and “Congress Finance”).

“Popov has always denied any ties with organized crime,” wrote Forbes. “In 1990, he was sentenced to three years in prison for extortion. […] In 1998, the extortion case was sent for review, and the court fully acquitted Popov ’due to the lack of evidence of a crime’.” Popov provided a copy of this decision to Forbes in 2009. He also showed documents in which he appears as a partner of Deripaska in the aluminum business, claiming to have rights to 10% of all assets of the "Basic Element" holding.

In the 2010s, Sergey Popov was mentioned multiple times in legal disputes between Deripaska and one of the leaders of the "Ismaylovsky" group, Mikhail “Misha-Krysha” Cherny, in European courts. Deripaska claimed that both the “Ismaylovsky” and “Podolsky” groups “protected” him, while the authorities of the 90s said they were business partners and demanded compensation for being ousted from Deripaska’s business.

Maxim Lalaki lists his first place of employment as “Rusal,” a company owned by Oleg Deripaska, on Facebook.

Ties with Putin

The “Podolsk” group portrays itself as having access to Vladimir Putin, although this connection is not as evident as Putin’s ties with the Tambov-Malyshev OCG.

In audio recordings published by Alexander Shestun, the ex-head of the Serpukhovsky District, FSB General Ivan Tkachev states that Vladimir Putin and Sergey Lalaki communicate. Recall that Shestun was sentenced to 15 years on charges of bribery, fraud, and money laundering, and a case was initiated against him after he published audio recordings in 2018 of conversations with FSB General Ivan Tkachev and Andrey Yarin, head of the Presidential Administration’s Internal Policy Department. Shestun claimed that Yarin and Tkachev forced him to resign in the interests of the Podolsk OCG. (Serpukhov is a city in the southern Moscow region within the influence zone of this OCG).

“‘Luchok’ is not quite a fully-fledged thief-in-law. He’s more like a ’carrier pigeon,’ but what he says is worth listening to,” said sources in the criminal world in 2013, referring to his proximity to power.

One of The Insider’s interlocutors, who previously worked in various state structures, says he is aware of at least one meeting between Putin and “Luchok”: during which they dined together in a restaurant.

The “Podolsk” group could have met Putin during his time working in the St. Petersburg mayor’s office. In the 90s, the “Podolsk” group controlled a major company of that time, “Soyuzcontract”: it was known for selling Royal alcohol and “Bush’s legs,” i.e., chicken drumsticks. “Soyuzcontract” imported its products through the St. Petersburg port — at a time when the future president was overseeing the port’s operations.

“They weren’t jailed because they paid money. To the 1996 Olympics and so on. They just moved into business, politics, sports. Their hierarchy remained the same: on TV, they’re in politics, and they resolve other issues while grilling kebabs at night,” proposes a source from the FSB to The Insider. Russian President’s press secretary Dmitriy Peskov did not answer The Insider’s question about a possible acquaintance between Vladimir Putin and Sergey Lalaki.

Sergey Lalaki and Boris Ivanyuzhenkov have received state awards.

Thug benefactors

For modern-day residents of Podolsk, stories about “Luchok” and “Rotan” are more related to memories of the 90s. Some remember the OCG as a socially-oriented structure.

“I used to go to the city bathhouse on weekends and learn Podolsk news there. In the mid-90s, I first heard about ’Luchok.’ Someone was saying that his son went missing: and you could go to ’Luchok,’ he could help with the search,” says an interlocutor of The Insider who worked in various state structures.

"Vlastelina" — one of the largest financial pyramids of the 90s, was based in Podolsk, and here’s what its creator Valentina Solovyeva says:

“I have lived in Podolsk since I was 17, and I know Lalaki and Ivanyuzhenkov well. I grew up with them – they were just guys back then... But I always worked under the cops and the FSB. Neither of them ever came to me [with offers of ’protection’], they knew about it. The attitude towards Lalaki and Ivanyuzhenkov was always good: they helped the city, helped those who got imprisoned, and those who returned to freedom. And businesses... Someone needed help with a funeral, others had a fire – they helped as well. They helped organize City Day. They were more beneficial [in the 90s] than anyone else: factories were closing, people were losing their jobs. They grew up in Podolsk from a young age and created their cells.”

Another urban legend says that gangsters punished those who behaved unacceptably with severe methods. The investigation "Sovershenno Sektretno" in 1999 about the Podolsk OCG recounts a story about a robber who raped a woman during a home invasion in front of her child, after which the Podolsk OCG gangsters found him and castrated him.

Thugs were also not alien to culture. Sergey Lalaki’s film about himself, "Byt Dobru," features, among other things, the unveiling of a monument to Mikhail Lermontov in the Podolsk city park that he financed. The “Heritage” Foundation continues to fund social and sporting events in Podolsk, and local media publish laudatory stories about Sergey Lalaki.

Sergey Lalaki and Boris Ivanyuzhenkov have supported the Paralympic Committee for many years, being part of it along with senator Vladimir Lukin, one of the founders of “Yabloko” and former human rights ombudsman. In the film “Byt Dobru,” it’s stated that Lalaki and Lukin have known each other since the 90s when Lukin was a federal parliament deputy from Podolsk. Vladimir Lukin reacted nervously to The Insider’s questions about Lalaki and Ivanyuzhenkov:

“The ‘Heritage’ fund provided some gratuitous assistance to the Paralympic Committee, helping the severely ill. I’m not familiar with any other aspects of [Lalaki and Ivanyuzhenkov’s] activities. I can say nothing else except that we’re grateful, for example, that they helped us acquire a special minibus for Paralympians. When the need arose [to help Paralympian athletes], we sought help in various directions. They were among those who responded. I know nothing else... You’re drawing me into further conversations, and I can say nothing more on this topic.”

Undisclosed villas

The last media manifestation of organized crime in Podolsk was a mass arrest at the end of 2015. Black expensive cars, including ones with “AUE” plates, the hands of stern men with thief tattoos, pistols, and automatics were captured on police video. According to media reports, it was a meeting of gangsters from Podolsk and Moscow’s Lyubertsy. Criminal charges for weapon possession were filed against two detainees aged 30 and 39. Names from the criminal chronicles of the 90s did not appear in this story. According to one of The Insider’s informants, street crime in Podolsk is now controlled by a certain criminal figure known as “Zub.” However, the level of influence and capabilities of “Zub” is incomparably less than that of “Luchok.”

The Podolsk OCG still occasionally surfaces in criminal incidents. In 2019, Daily Storm reported on a reshuffle of the advertising market in Stupino (a city in the southern Moscow region): local entrepreneur Sergey Klyushkin had his car and premises set on fire. A criminal case was initiated, and representatives of Stupino’s city administration were among the detained. Daily Storm’s sources in the police linked the detainees to the Podolsk OCG.

The Insider spoke with Klyushkin, who said he cannot confirm or deny the connection between his adversaries and Podolsk. All figures in the criminal case are from Domodedovo, a city near Podolsk. From former employees of Stupino’s administration to arsonists who were brought to Stupino from Domodedovo, and a Domodedovo police officer who connected the arsonists with the crime’s sponsors.

The “Podolsk” group members no longer wish to be associated with the OCG. Both leaders and ordinary members now consider themselves businessmen.

“These are elderly people, business owners. They’ve known each other for a long time and live nearby,” says an interlocutor from The Insider who made a career in companies of the “Podolsk” group. “I joined one of their companies in Moscow in the late 90s through a newspaper ad, ‘Iz ruk v ruki.’ Everything I saw was just regular business, nothing mafia-related. They encouraged me to study and get an MBA. But online, it says I’m a participant of the Podolsk OCG! I recently went to a car showroom to swap one [mid-range model] car for another. The salesman was checking something on the computer, and suddenly his face went pale... Clearly, he Googled my surname,” laments the narrator.

Currently, Sergey Lalaki and Boris Ivanyuzhenkov live in Podolsk in cottages on Krasnogvardeyskiy Boulevard: their houses, of Rublevka-level, starkly contrast with the nearby Soviet high-rise buildings and dachas. With video cameras around the perimeter, large tinted oval windows, and other architectural delights. Ivanyuzhenkov’s house is not listed in his parliamentary declaration: according to information from the State Duma’s website, Ivanyuzhenkov only uses a 47-square-meter apartment. The house of the Communist Party deputy is registered to his wife Natalia Ivanyuzhenkova, situated on a nearly 1600 square meter plot.

Undisclosed mansion of “Rotan”

The Podolsk house of Sergey Lalaki was mentioned twice in “Kommersant” publications. Once, when an attempt to blow up “Luchok” failed in 1997 (the result was the death of two hitmen). The second time was when a search took place in his house.

“The two-story villa [of Sergey] Lalaki in Podolsk was surrounded by OMON fighters. Near the house were three foreign cars, one of which — a Jeep Grand Cherokee — belongs to Lalaki […]. The house contained a large collection of daggers. One of them Lalaki proudly showed to the RUOP officers, stating that it was a rare specimen made in France. When a keen-eyed officer examined the dagger more closely, he discovered that it was marked ‘made in Taywan.’ This infuriated Luchok, and he promised to deal severely with the gift giver of the fake.”

The search, where the dagger blunder occurred, appears to be the only criminal case in which Sergey Lalaki had official suspect status. The criminals appropriated funds allocated for building a house for the military in Smolensk. With this money, according to the investigation, they bought themselves three Grand Cherokee jeeps. Lalaki was soon released without charges. The Vershins were wanted in this case.

Daggers continue to be gifted to Sergey Lalaki. This is a frame from the documentary film “Byt Dobru,” filmed for his 60th birthday. The film also shows a reception for several hundred people, organized by Sergey Lalaki at his country residence on Paratrooper’s Day (August 2) in 2015.

“[Sergey] Lalaki funded the special forces of the airborne troops, and he funded very seriously: he purchased equipment and technical devices. The top leadership of the airborne troops is aware of this,” asserts Alexander Shestun.

Sergey Lalaki’s country villa is located in the settlement of Klenovskoye in New Moscow (until 2012, it was the Podolsk district of the Moscow region). It is uniquely located for Moscow’s territory: near a lake with no other buildings nearby. There are no other residential houses within a radius of two to five kilometers. The villa occupies three hectares and is registered to Sergey’s wife, Valentina Lalaki (extract available to The Insider). On maps, it is shown as quarter No. 278 of Klenovskoye settlement.

Villa “Luchok”

The villa’s area includes a garden, kitchen garden, stables, embankment with paths, gazebos, and statues, utility buildings, a tennis court, a football field, presumably guest cottages, and two large houses right by the lake. Two boats are moored at the pier.

Sergey’s wife, Valentina Lalaki, along with the Vershins brothers, owns the “Kaluzhskaya Zastava” country restaurant complex, located eight kilometers from Troitsk. “Kaluzhskaya Zastava” is two hectares in a forest with cottages and grounds. The complex faces Kaluga Highway. Occasionally, one can see that the parking lot is empty, at other times – filled with imposing black cars, security guards stationed around the perimeter.

Two former members of the Podolsk OCG confirmed to The Insider that meetings of the community are held in this place. It seems that the "retirees" are not entirely out of the game. Another source sent photos of a "Podolsk" meeting at “Kaluzhskaya Zastava” in 2017: there, Sergey Lalaki is photographed with a guest linked to the Solntsevskaya OCG authority, Gafur Rakhimov (known in the criminal world simply as Gafura). In the United States, Gafur was sanctioned along with Ramzan Kadyrov’s close associate, State Duma deputy Adam Delimkhanov, in relation to charges of drug trafficking.

The “Novorizhskaya Zastava” restaurant complex (with a controlling stake by Maxim Lalaki) on Novorizhskoye Highway is conceived in the same style as "Kaluzhskaya Zastava." Maxim’s wife Anna gave an interview as the complex manager. The Lalaki invested 600 million rubles in the project. Whether meetings occur there as well is unknown.