In 2002, a book was published on the everyday life of the state security service. A.V. Litvinenko, a former FSB lieutenant colonel, tells readers about how the almighty âofficeâ promotes its people to the highest echelons of power in its people, about their connection with the criminal world, about corruption, contract killings and âprotectionâ.
about the author
Alexander Valterovich was born on December 4, 1962 in Voronezh. He grew up in Nalchik, graduated from high school there and in 1980 joined the army. He served in the internal troops, then entered the school of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In 1988 - for KGB intelligence courses and since 1991 he worked in the FSB department, where he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel.
Alexander Litvinenko openly accused the leadership of special services of crimes and corruption, criticized the government and the president of the country. In 1998, at a press conference, he said that they had received an order to liquidate B. Berezovsky. In 1999, under a far-fetched pretext, Litvinenko was detained and sent to jail. He was acquitted, but immediately, in the courtroom, was detained on another charge. This time, Litvinenko was released on his own recognizance.
Escape from Russia
Alexander Litvinenko understood that he should not stay in Russia. In October 2002, he left for Georgia. The wife and son flew to Spain. In Tbilisi, Litvinenko applied to the American Embassy for political asylum. The Americans did not give an answer, and staying in Georgia was dangerous.
Litvinenko moved to Turkey - a visa was not required. His wife Marina and her son flew out from Spain. The Americans refused Litvinenko asylum, and he turned to A. Goldfarb. He helped get Alexander Walterovich permission to enter the UK. This is described in detail in the preface to the book âLubyanka criminal gangâ.
Personal life
Iâve known Litvinenkoâs first wife since childhood, was friends with her brother and was a frequent guest at Natalyaâs house in Fryazino, where they lived next door. Due to poor health, Alexander was sent to Nalchik, to his grandmother and grandfather. They got married with Natalya when Litvinenko was a cadet at the school of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They lived together for more than ten years and as a family of military men traveled around the country. They had two children, and the transfer of Alexander to the FSB was long-awaited.
On one of the assignments, in the house of the Chislov family, guarded by special services, he met with Marina. Alexander divorced Natalia when her son Sasha was six years old, and her daughter Sonya was not even two. The couple parted peacefully, Alexander helped them. Natalia speaks well of him and considers his death a terrible tragedy.
In 1994, Marina and Alexander had a son, Tolya. Now he graduated from university college with a degree in Eastern European politics. He called his choice a tribute to his father, who passed away in a college clinic. In one interview, he said that his father did everything to improve his homeland.
In exile
Having received asylum in the UK, Litvinenko collaborated with B. Berezovsky, the secret British and Spanish services. He was an intermediary in trade transactions between Russia and England. He wrote articles and gave interviews with accusations against the Russian regime. What he said in his book âLubyanka criminal gangâ.
In 2006, during a meeting with former colleagues, he was poisoned with radioactive poison. Despite the efforts of doctors, Litvinenkoâs condition worsened. He died twenty-three days later and is buried in London at the Highgate Cemetery. An international scandal erupted around the tragic death of a former FSB lieutenant colonel.
Social work
In 2001, a book was published in Russian by Y. Felshtinsky and Alexander Litvinenko, âThe FSB Explodes Russia,â then translated into English. In 2003, a criminal case was opened for the disclosure of state secrets. The book was published in publishing houses in New York and Latvia, and the circulation intended for sale in Russia was withdrawn. Since May 2015, it has been included in the list of extremist materials.
The second book âLubyanka criminal gangâ was published in 2002, it was not translated into English. In October of the same year, a presentation was held at the Moscow Mariot-Aurora Hotel. A. Goldfarb, one of the authors of the preface, compared this book with the âGulag Archipelagoâ and the âAnne Frank Diaryâ, explaining that this is one of the things that change public consciousness.
Publishers were afraid to publish âexplosiveâ materials not only in Russia, but also in the near CIS. One word âLubyankaâ, referred to in this book, is terrifying. One by one, they openly declared that they were afraid of physical reprisal, not to mention the fact that they would have to forget about business.
About the book
The âLubyanka criminal gangâ was written in the interview genre. The interlocutor of Litvinenko is journalist Akram Murtazaev. In the preface, he writes his remarks that everything that the former FSB lieutenant colonel is talking about requires verification. But Litvinenko is ready to answer for every word spoken, so he listens to him. The content of the âLubyanka criminal groupâ provoked conflicting opinions. Former colonel of special services V. Streletsky said that it was a âdead catâ planted by Berezovsky. V. Pimonov, the author of the book about the backstage life of politicians, noted that the material was presented correctly and if the facts that Litvinenko cites are true, then âthis is scaryâ.
What does the author write about?
Litvinenko reveals professional secrets, talks about representatives of the highest echelons of power and calls them the âLubyanka criminal gangâ (LPG). Litvinenko writes about kidnappings and killings, about drug trafficking, about corruption up to the presidential administration, about cooperation between criminal groups and special services.
In one of the interviews, the author said that he had no illusions that the book would overturn public consciousness. He doesnât think that after reading the âLubyanka criminal gangâ people will take to the streets demanding a change of power. But they may want to get an intelligible answer from the authorities regarding the bombings of houses and corruption in Kremlin offices.
Testimonial book
The head of the Civil Liberties Fund A. Goldfarb and the journalist A. Murtazaev wrote the preface to the âLPGâ.
The first one tells how he learned from Berezovsky that Litvinenko is in Turkey, wants to go to the American embassy and surrender, otherwise he will be extradited to Russia, where he will be arrested. The author talks in detail about how he helped the Litvinenko family get to England. A year and a half after a trip to Turkey, he received a manuscript of the book âLubyanka criminal gangâ.
A. Murtazaev writes that the escape from the special services is a scandalous and exciting story in itself. Litvinenko talked about the structure of the state security service. To appreciate the weight of this information, it is enough to hear the names that the FSB lieutenant colonel called, forced to flee from his own colleagues. Akram writes that he was recording Litvinenkoâs story on the recorder and noticed that he was asking him less and less questions. It was as if he had witnessed an interrogation, to which the FSB lieutenant colonel called himself.
In general, the book can be divided into several parts:
- A story about his personal life, service in the FSB, about the persecution, trial and escape abroad.
- Description of cases when KGB, FSB and RUOP officers created various organized crime groups, âroofedâ and took part in illegal actions, including murders and extortions.
- About the war in Chechnya and the organization of the explosion that killed Shamil Basayev.
- About Berezovsky, about the struggle that unfolded near the oligarch and the attempt on him.
- On the authorities of the Uzbek group and their ties leading to the Kremlin.
- Description of the Ryazan explosions.
Lieutenant Colonel of the FSB
In the first part of the Lubyanka criminal gang, the main character is the author of the book. He talks about his life, about how he became a career officer, about his service in the KGB since 1988, and since 1997 - at the URPO, which is engaged in the fight against organized crime and terrorism. The author writes about the upcoming presidential elections, where communists, oligarchs and special services fought for power.
In this chapter, Litvinenko talks about the years spent in the FSB, about the first âdiscoveriesâ about the relationship of law enforcement officials with criminals. About clashes in the service, about a trumped-up case against him, about his arrest, about the days spent in Butyrka and Lubyanka, and his release.
Insider security
In the second and third chapters, the author writes directly about the structure of the special services, about the departments, about the methods of âdevelopmentâ, about the affairs that were carried out over the years of his work. Here he says that not all colleagues were sold, he names the names of specific people and schemes of criminal relations. It reveals who âprotectedâ the bandits, how much the lives of certain people were estimated, and who âorderedâ them and executed orders.
In the fourth chapter, âUzbek Trace,â Litvinenko writes that criminal authorities from Uzbekistan had connections in Kremlin offices. He does not name the surname, but well-defined schemes allow the reader to understand who is who. After Litvinenkoâs death, a file of the same name was attached to the report in London. It refers to the fact that in the 90s this group controlled the drug trafficking âAsia - Russia - Europeâ.
Backstage
The fifth and sixth chapters tell about the âKremlin warsâ, if I may say so about the struggle of the oligarchs close to power, about the attempt on Berezovsky and the struggle of the powerful with the KGB. Here, the author talks about the newly created department to combat organized crime. How Litvinenko became its leader, about the order for the murder of Berezovsky received from above.
In the next three chapters, the author writes about the memorable day of 1993, when tanks fired at the walls of the White House, and about the power struggle invisible to the average layman. Here Litvinenko talks about his attempts to appeal to justice, about harassment by special services, about how former colleagues warned that they wanted to remove him, about his decision to flee abroad.
Here, the author confides with the reader and tells: he was forced to leave Russia with a fake passport, which his former colleagues helped to get. In the tenth and last chapter, Litvinenko talks about the terrorists and the bombings in Ryazan that shocked the entire population of Russia at one time. According to him, the militants chose this city because the Ryazan division is fighting in Chechnya. This was beneficial for the FSB: on the one hand, to instill a sense of revenge in the paratroopers before the planned operation, and on the other, to show the population Chechen terrorism.
Readers about the book
Reviews of the âLubyanka criminal gangâ are rather controversial. Evaluate the literary merits of the book does not make sense. It was not written in order to impress the reader with the style and style of the author, but was created to convey a set of facts, versions and evidence. At the same time, it is rather difficult to call it a reliable source. The reader feels that the storyteller is honest and frank. He does not hide his weaknesses and admits mistakes.
Loud, familiar to many names and surnames attract interest, but cause completely opposite opinions. Some consider the author a traitor and a provocateur, hired by Western intelligence agencies in order to discredit the current Russian government and bring discord to society. Other readers, by contrast, believe that the author accomplished the feat, not being afraid to openly declare the Kremlin elite and criminal ties.