Translated material
A stage in the life of an entrepreneur
Vladimir Barsukov was escorted from St. Petersburg to Moscow
The Petrogradsky District Court of St. Petersburg on Friday granted the request of the Prosecutor General's Office to arrest one of the most influential businessmen in the city and simply an authoritative person, Vladimir Barsukov (he previously bore the last name Kumarin). As it turned out during the meeting, he was suspected of committing a number of crimes, including an attempt on the life of the owner of the St. Petersburg oil terminal, Sergei Vasiliev, with the aim of subsequently taking over this company. Already on Saturday, Mr. Barsukov was transferred to Moscow under heavy security. The first official charges are expected to be brought against him this week.Vladimir Barsukov was brought to court at about 9 am. However, as it turned out later, his lawyers were not informed about the start time of the hearing, so the hearing began closer to noon. In the area of the Petrograd court, enhanced security measures were taken, due, according to operatives, to the fact that they had information that Mr. Barsukov could either be killed or attempted to be kidnapped. All entrances to the court were blocked by traffic police squads, soldiers of the special police detachment of the Ministry of Internal Affairs “Zubr” were on duty near the building itself and inside.
The court hearing lasted about six hours. The judge denied the defense's request to release Mr. Barsukov on bail due to the fact that he is suspected of a serious crime, may hide from the investigation and put pressure on witnesses. The next day, the suspect was transferred to Moscow - under the pretext that the investigation into his case was being conducted directly by the Prosecutor General's Office.
Initially, official representatives of the special services avoided any comments regarding the detention of Mr. Barsukov, who was at various times called in the media either the leader of the Tambov criminal group or one of the most influential St. Petersburg businessmen and politicians. However, on Friday the Prosecutor General's Office still explained its interest in this person. As noted in the department’s message, “Citizen V.S. Barsukov" is suspected of committing a number of crimes, including murder and attempted organization of a contract killing with the aim of subsequently taking over the St. Petersburg oil terminal. This, in all likelihood, is about an incident that occurred in May last year. Then the Rolls-Royce of the actual owner of this company, Sergei Vasiliev, was fired at from machine guns at the intersection of Levashovsky Prospekt and Ordinarnaya Street. As a result, one of the guards was killed and two more were injured. The businessman himself was seriously wounded.
Six months later, St. Petersburg police officers detained the alleged perpetrators of the attack - residents of Ryazan, brothers Andrei and Oleg Mikhalev. As the media reported then, according to investigators, the killers were provided with fake documents by someone Alexander, nicknamed Chudnoy, who was allegedly the right hand of the famous raider and member of the Tambov group Vyacheslav Drokov. The latter, as it was reported then, was allegedly a good friend of Vladimir Barsukov.
In addition, in connection with the arrest of Mr. Barsukov, the Prosecutor General’s Office stated that law enforcement agencies continue “work to eliminate the activities of organized criminal communities, whose members carried out “raider” seizures of large real estate objects of organizations and enterprises in St. Petersburg, associated with the murders of owners and competitors." “Currently, the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office is investigating 15 criminal cases involving the illegal takeover of 30 enterprises,” the message said. -- 76 members of the organized crime group have already been brought to criminal responsibility for committing these crimes, of which 32 people have been arrested, 13 have been put on the international wanted list. The investigation is also verifying Barsukov’s involvement in the above-mentioned seizures of real estate in St. Petersburg, other contract killings and other grave and especially grave crimes.”
The special services have been trying to fight the Tambov group, to which almost all the most notorious crimes in St. Petersburg were attributed, since the early 90s. It was regularly reported that the Tambov gang had crushed a significant part of the region’s economy, and mass arrests of its members were regularly carried out, but the group, judging by subsequent statements by the heads of law enforcement agencies, continued to operate safely. As part of these operations, Mr. Barsukov himself was detained. However, he denied all accusations of connections with the Tambov group, called himself simply a “pensioner” and more than once sued both the media and representatives of law enforcement agencies.
The last time Prosecutor General Yuri Chaika spoke about the next offensive in Tambov last winter. According to him, law enforcement agencies then identified a “raider” group that was going to seize more than 40 large enterprises in the city. “It was possible to investigate this criminal case after a powerful team from the Prosecutor General’s Office arrived,” noted Mr. Chaika. At that time, 46 people were charged. According to the prosecutor's office, it was about the so-called Tambov criminal group. In July, the Prosecutor General's Office announced the completion of an investigation into a number of criminal cases against 14 members of organized criminal groups who, according to the investigation, as a result of fraud and arbitrariness, seized the property of such large enterprises as the St. Petersburg Oil Terminal, the Confectionery Factory named after. Krupskaya", "Hotel St. Petersburg", "Pulkovsky Supermarket", "Frunzensky Fruit and Vegetable Plant". In addition, as part of these investigations, charges were brought against four employees of the St. Petersburg tax service department, who, according to the investigation, had access to the electronic database of the Unified State Register of Legal Entities and made illegal changes there.
Business circles believe that Mr. Barsukov’s conflict with the law could lead to a redistribution of the fuel market in the northern capital. The name of a reputable entrepreneur is associated with the St. Petersburg Fuel Company (PTK), which is considered one of the largest in the local market. Until recently, PTK managed to maintain independence and avoid takeover.