Who are you, Mr. Kumarin-Barsukov?

Reflections on the leader of the Tambov criminal community, his relations with Vladimir Putin and the murder of Galina Starovoitova

After the sentence on August 28, the former deputy of the State Duma Mikhail Glushchenko (17 years in prison of the liberty of a maximum security colony for participating in the murder of the politician Galina Starovotova ) about the "criminal Petersburg" of the 1990s gained new popularity. Glushchenko, defending himself, said that, preparing a crime, he complied with the order of Vladimir Kumarin (Barsukova) , the leader of the so -called Tambov criminal community , whose relations with officials of the city government were told differently.

Is Vladimir Kumarin (Barsukov) involved in the murder of Galina Starovotova? Was he a friend of Vladimir Putin? The interlocutor of Radio Liberty is the general director of the information and analytical agency of journalistic investigations , writer Andrei Konstantinov.

- Andrey, you knew Vladimir Kumarin (Barsukova) well, talked a lot with him. What impression did you make a sentence to Mikhail Glushchenko and his statement?

- Nothing really new, it did not happen, except that the prosecutor initially asked him an unexpectedly soft sentence - 13 years. Then they fixed it, but there was some light intrigue in all this. Well, and, of course, it looked quite funny that he finally officially outlined that, they say, Kumarin was the customer of the murder of Galina Starovoitova. Why is it funny? Even the relatives of the deceased somehow did not greatly delight and somewhat embarrassed. After all, it is clear that 17 years have passed, and now you can say anything. Most of the people simply do not remember either the murder or Starovoitova, and even more so any possible reasons, and therefore it can be easily said: "But there was such a" night governor "who was atrocious, cut all in a row, strangled, drowned, so he also killed Starovoitov."

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Petersburg Freedom. Who is Vladimir Kumarin-Barsukov?

Andrey Konstantinov

I do not want to be Kumarin's lawyer at all. Kumarin is a person, as they say, "very, very." It would be necessary for him to send half of the State Duma to the next world-he, quite possibly, would have done this if he had a reason, some reason. But why should he kill Starovoitov? To this question, in addition to some empty slapping with her lips that it was supposedly "she dealt with the fight against organized crime was a threat to him, etc.," so far there is no answer. There is even a feeling of awkwardness for those who say such absolute nonsense. She did not engage in any special, systemic struggle against organized crime at the time of death. She was engaged in regional elections. And what does Kumarin have to do with it are completely unclear.

Kumarin and Glushchenko cost each other

Kumarin (theoretically) could act as another intermediate link for someone else. The emergence of such a chain can be assumed: someone - Kumarin - Glushchenko - Kolchin . But I doubt it, because Glushchenko was a deputy of the State Duma, and it seems to me that this was his deputy and allowed him when he was swimming among the “big fish” in Moscow, to encounter a person who would be interested in the murder of Starovoitova. And then options are possible. Either there really was an order, a direct request, or sometimes it happens like this: "I understand that you, in principle, would like this person to be killed. I will give you such a gift, and then I will say that I did it, and my actions will grow from this." Purely theoretically ...

Kumarin falls out of this scheme, because he was not a deputy, he was a man with whom not all politicians longed to meet, although more than ten deputies of the State Duma had arrived on his 50th anniversary. Incidentally, he was an assistant to the State Duma deputy Alexander Nevzorov .

Kumarin (theoretically) could act as another intermediate link for someone else

I do not take seriously the version that the law enforcement agencies set a goal to “close” Kumarin and for this offered Glushchenko a deal: “They say, you are voicing the surname“ Kumarin ”, and we are for you and that and that.” I don't think it was so. I think no one forced Glushchenko to call this surname. Glushchenko, I believe, tried to guess what they wanted to hear from him. He was made to understand that a lifelong conclusion shines, if he does not call anyone, so he began to deduct. What else could he say? He can call at least the Pope! After more than 17 years, what traces have remained, except for his word?

- Mikhail Glushchenko introduced Vladimir Kumarin as a certain terrible person who can threaten his life and the life of his loved ones today.

Mikhail Glushchenko

- Listen, he and Kumarin did a lot of things. And there was a completely different system of relations. I watched it personally. There was a fairly friendly atmosphere: friends, colleagues. It was not there that the main ghoul walks, and everyone else is running on the troughs, they are afraid to sigh. Kumarin and the famous Hokhmach himself. I played with him in the backgammon, so he did not pour as jokes! They are both - serious guys. Both have tied a lot of things, made. So, if Glushchenko says that he was afraid of Kumarin, then I can say that Kumarin was also afraid of him, because he knew what "Uncle Misha" was capable of. And "Uncle Misha" was a capable man. They cost each other.

- If you recall that autumn of 1998, you can be horrified from what was happening in St. Petersburg. Here is a rude chronology. On September 28, the Deputy Chairman of the City Hall Committee on the Consumer Market Evgeny Ogarev was blown up (presumably, Hexogen); On October 10, the well -known politician Dmitry Filippov was blown up (also, presumably using hexogen); On November 12, under mysterious circumstances, the former head of the Leningrad department of the KGB, former head of Vladimir Putin, Anatoly Kurkov die; On November 20, Galina Starovoitov is killed. Don't you think this is the links of one chain?

Then every day was killed, there were several resonant murders per week

- This scheme, you built, is an artificial design. There are a lot of things in it: other names, faces, etc. You forget about what time it was. It was a time when the peak of gangster, criminal wars had not yet passed. I remember him very well, because we already worked at this time. Then every day was killed, there were several resonant murders per week. We did not have time to work them out, there was a real shaft. He began to subside only by 2000. In 1998, there was a very dense shooting. And it is difficult to link these killings among themselves in the sense that in your mosaic there are a lot of other dead. Just now many have already forgotten.

Then the Shutov team acted. How many people they sent to the next world is hard to say! They hunted murders, it was a type of business for them. They took contracts for elimination and worked as a conveyor. In this sense, by the way, Glushchenko with his Kolchinsky gang was not the most professional. These were greedy as peasants, therefore, they took his weapons to shit. At the machine gun from which they shot at Starovoitov, the store had to be wedged with a chip so that it would not fly out. It would be more reliable with an ax.

Galina Starovoitova

Here you should not look for such a conspiracyology that you drew. It is necessary to sadly recall that time. Then the murder for so many people both in business and in politics was just a certain way of doing business, and very effective. And, in principle, it was inexpensive. This is in feature films millions of dollars. The Lord is with you! Quitely trained freaks with machine guns, which more or less, could be performed by three, did this one and a half to two thousand dollars. There was a bad time. In the period from 1990 to 2000 in St. Petersburg in such showdowns, not counting household ones, about 6,000 people were killed (for comparison: during the same period of the war, 14,000 people were killed in Afghanistan). And this is only in St. Petersburg.

- And yet you, Andrey, cannot agree that Vladimir Kumarin was the customer of the murder of Galina Starovoitova?

Then the murder for so many people both in business and in politics was just a certain way of doing business, and very effective

- I believe that the issue of the customer has not been finalized. On Kumarin now you can hang everything. The point is not that I regret him terribly. Kumarin, in the end, will not answer for many things anyway, simply because the investigation cannot grab everything. His interests were too vast. But when I just don’t understand what his “trump interest” is, it’s not good that I don’t understand. I am really a specialist in these matters, and I want it to be clear to me.

Vladimir Kumarin (Barsukov)

- Vladimir Kumarin (Barsukov) was close to both Vladimir Putin and with many members of his team. The guards from his private security company guarded the Lake cooperative , for several years he was vice president of the St. Petersburg fuel company and actively collaborated with Vladimir Smirnov , the founder of the same cooperative Lake. The list can be continued.

How is it: a close person to Vladimir Putin and at the same time - a killer sitting in prison for the eighth year?

- I am unknown to the degree of their closeness. A lot of legends go about this. I have not seen them together and I can’t say anything on this score. I think that Putin knew many actors in the city, since he was the first deputy mayor, especially in the past - an employee of the KGB. But he would have to have acquaintances with some key players in order to at least imagine what it is, who it is and where it is. I’m silent that if one of the same “Tambov community” receives the status of a State Duma deputy, then the chief of the Central Internal Affairs Directorate is obliged to accept him, because this is the status of a federal minister-you like, do not like, a bandit, not a bandit. Sorry, he is a deputy, appoint time, he will come to you.

Kumarin has always sorry for his criminal past

Kumarin has always sorry for his criminal past. He never directly spoke about it, but it, of course, was weighed. He loved to repeat the phrase: "I am ready to report for any of my million, with the exception of the first." I think it was also cunning - that he was ready to report for each of his million. But he was unpleasant that he was not entering all the doors. He tried to compensate for this with acquaintances with athletes, with Olympic champions, with opera sofas. For example, he once introduced me to Anna Netrebko . He made some kind of pop artistic festival, gave money to him. He loved this business.

Kumarin wanted legalization, he wanted to go to the legal establishment, but he did not succeed

By the way, in the credits of the series "Idiot" there is gratitude to him, and not because director Vladimir Bortko was intimidated. Everything was very simple there: Bortko shoots this film "Idiot", shoots, shoots ... financing is carried out by the Russia TV channel. But at some point, his money ends, the film ends. Bortko calls me and says that he does not have enough film for $ 36,000. I was surprised and asked: "Why are you calling me?" - "Can you call Kumarin and report it?" - "Lord, with you, I never asked him anything." - "Well, can you tell him what is it for Bortko?" - "Okay, of course, I can say, however, I don’t know how he will react." I call Kumarin, I say: "Volodya, here is the case: Bortko, the film" Idiot ", money ended on film." Kumarin replies: "There is no problem, only I will not give money. What is the marking of the film and how much it needs, I will buy it and bring it." Apparently, he was already experienced, sometimes he asked for something under some kind of Surdinka, and then deceived. He bought a film, brought Bortko. Bortko told him "many thanks", finished the film and put the gratitude to Kumarin in the credits.

Why did he do this? He just wanted to communicate with normal people. How could he use the director Bortko in his criminal activity? Yes, he could not. Kumarin wanted legalization, he wanted a legal establishment, but he did not succeed, ” said the general director of the information and analytical agency of journalistic investigations, writer Andrei Konstantinov.