The Investigative Committee named personal hostility as the motive for Yaponchik’s murder

The motive for the murder of crime boss Vyacheslav Ivankov , nicknamed Yaponchik, was personal hostility on the part of thief in law Ilya Simoniya (Makho). Deputy head of the Investigative Committee Rostislav Rassokhov told Kommersant about this in an interview.

"The conflict between them began back in the 1980s, when both were serving sentences in the Irkutsk Region colonies. Information that those accused of killing Yaponchik were involved in the death of Ded Khasan was not received during the investigation," Rassokhov said.

According to Rassokhov, the investigation has identified all those involved in the crime. He did not specify how many people are involved in the case.

• Simonia was arrested in absentia in April 2020 on charges of organizing Ivankov's murder and was placed on the international wanted list.
• In February 2020, the Investigative Committee reported that it had found two alleged accomplices in Ivankov's murder, and in May of the same year, another. All three were arrested.