Slonovskaya organized crime group (organized criminal group): description, composition and interesting facts

In the last decade of the last century, Russia was swept by a wave of criminal showdowns. During this period, a huge number of organized crime groups were created, each of which had a sphere of influence in a particular region of our country. Gangs operating across Russia competed among themselves for the right to get a “tidbit” in the manufacturing sector, giving bribes to officials and intimidating intractable businessmen. However, an ordinary citizen could also suffer from crime.

In the early 90s, the Slonovskaya organized criminal group was rapidly gaining strength and authority. In its power, it was not much inferior to the “Solntsevo” or “Orekhovskaya” ones. This only confirms the fact that the "elephant" ones played far from a secondary role in criminal Russia. How did this group become a large and influential criminal structure, and what was its final? Let's consider this question in more detail.

How was created

The Elephant Orchestra was established in 1991 in Ryazan. Initially, the gang was called the "presentation" group, since the headquarters was in the "Present" restaurant. Her ideological inspiration was the former driver of the deputy local prosecutor Nikolai Maximov (nickname "Max") and the taxi driver Vyacheslav Ermolov (nickname "Elephant"). In honor of the second, the criminal community was subsequently renamed.

The beginning of criminal activity

The first cases of the "elephant" had a "soft" criminal connotation. They took money from people through the game of "thimble", using, of course, not sleight of hand.

Having gained experience in fraud, the Slonovskaya organized crime group began more serious acts. Gang members began to carry out criminal fraud in the automotive market, as a result of which buyers were left without money and without transport. But after a little time, the Slonovskaya gang came into the view of law enforcement officers and its members were arrested. But Max took all the blame, and the court issued him a “soft” sentence, giving a suspended sentence. Another leader, Vyacheslav Yeromolov, turned out to be completely clean before the law: in his actions the detectives did not see the corpus delicti.

Thus, for the first time, the Elephant organized crime group got off quite easily.

The scope of interests is expanding ...

After some time, the criminals turned their attention to businessmen. They racketed “shuttles”, “cooperators”, and entrepreneurs, demanding regular payments of money from them. At that time, novice businessmen often circumvented the law and did not disdain to deal with "criminal" elements that could settle all issues with officials for a certain amount. Even companies close to bankruptcy were charged. The elephant organized crime group, whose composition was mottled (ex-football players, martial arts trainers, locksmiths, milling workers, etc.), developed a rule for beginners: in order to prove their professional suitability, the “potential” bandit must find a new point that could be surrounded tribute.

But Ermolov and Maksimov eventually became closely “in the business environment”, and they decided to “take under cover” the enterprises engaged in the manufacturing sector.

Structure

In the criminal community, there was a rigid hierarchical system: the lowest level was occupied by fighters, and they were led by a link.

Those who violated discipline were severely punished, even to the point of physical destruction. Several units formed a brigade. The brigade manager had a certain independence, controlling the territory entrusted to him. He could independently solve certain issues, including financial ones. The foremen were directly accountable to Yermolov or his proxies.

The struggle for spheres of influence

However, for the "elephants" not everything was so rosy. Competitors began to block their way, namely: Kochetkovskaya, Airapetovskaya and Arkhipovskaya groups, which also had significant authority in Ryazan. At first, all parties were trying to resolve the emerging conflicts peacefully, but then the contradictions only began to grow and it was impossible to resolve disputes without the use of weapons. In 1993, on one of the “shooters”, a clash took place between gang leaders Viktor Airapetov and Vyacheslav Ermolov. The first professionally engaged in sports, and therefore won the fight with the leader of the "elephant". But the associates of Ermolov yearned for revenge for beating the boss. They raided the bathhouse in which the Ayrapet people “steamed” and began to beat them. However, Ayrapetov himself was not in the public institution, so the Slonovskaya gang (the city of Ryazan) considered the issue of revenge open.

Disassembly continues

In the fall of 1993, there was another “hit” on the gang of Viktor Ayrapetov.

In the club of the Ryazselmash plant, unidentified men opened fire on the Ayrapetovtsi. Their leader, hiding from the bullets behind the column, was not injured, but some of his accomplices were shot dead. After this incident, Ayrapetov left for the capital and from there led the “wards”.

He decided to get rid of the offenders. In the spring of 1994, Max was shot from a pistol. Behind him, the leader of the Slonovskaya gang, Vyacheslav Ermolov, was supposed to die. It was planned that during the farewell ceremony with Nikolai Maksimov in the Church of the Ascension, Sergei Manikin (a member of Ayrapetov’s gang) would blow up the “sacred place” where the “elephant’s” would be located using a remote device. However, when the bandit was at a distance of one and a half hundred meters from the temple, the explosive mechanism unexpectedly triggered from the car alarm panel.

After that, the "elephant" craved revenge. They killed Sergei Ayrapetov (brother of the leader), who was never connected with crime. It was expected that Victor would come to his brother’s funeral and then the “elephant brother” would deal with him. But he did not come, ordering his accomplices to wage war with competitors.

Only in the fall of 1995, the Slonovskaya gang (Ryazan) was able to crack down on Ayrapetov. The leader’s car was stopped by the capital’s riot police, whose officers handcuffed Victor and his guards. Dressed in the form of the siloviks, the "elephant" took Airapetov in an unknown direction, and a week later his corpse was found on the side of the Ryazan highway in Moscow.

Experts estimate that between 1994 and 1996, wards of Vyacheslav Ermolov executed more than eighty contract killings.

The era of the reign of "elephants" in Ryazan

Having eliminated the main rival in matters represented by Viktor Ayrapetov, the “elephant” ones turned into one of the most powerful criminal groups in the country. They boldly went to successful entrepreneurs and imposed their services on them. The rebels were facing severe punishment. As already emphasized, the Slonovskaya organized crime group levied even unprofitable and unpromising enterprises. Over time, the “customer base” of the gang was so swollen that a clear schedule was drawn up who should come to Ryazan and when. Money was brought to racketeers to the central stadium.

Gypsies who were involved in drug trafficking also came to the attention of the bandits. Once one of them did not want to pay tribute to the "elephant", and then he was hacked with an ax, and his pregnant wife was brutally beaten.

A few more items of income

At the end of 1993, fraudulent schemes with postal credit memos began to be implemented. The Slonovskaya organized crime group could not but put into circulation this type of “criminal” earnings. On deceit with false advice notes, the bandits “earned” 900 million rubles. After they made an attempt to inflict damage of 19 billion rubles, but it was unsuccessful.

Criminals also made a profit from tourism activities, money from tours to Yesenin places fell directly into their pockets. To increase the volume of financial revenues, the Slonovskaya organized criminal group and the organization of financial pyramids did not disdain.

The final

But, ultimately, in the law enforcement system there were people who declared war on criminal groups in Russia. Among them is the investigator of the regional prosecutor's office, Dmitry Plotkin. After analyzing the situation, the detective realized that without the coordinated work of law enforcement agencies, the Slonovskaya organized criminal group (one of the most fierce groups) could escape retaliation.

Case promoted

An investigation team was formed, which in addition to the investigator included UBOP officers Vladimir Tsepkov and Alexander Makarov, as well as a number of representatives of law enforcement agencies. It was decided first of all to deprive the organized crime group of its leaders and ideological inspirers. Then it was necessary to work to ensure that ordinary gang members agreed to give evidence that incriminated their bosses in committing crimes. The clear and coordinated activities of the brigade very soon marked the expected results. The governor of the Ryazan region even provided assistance in catching criminals.

The detectives were able to establish the guilt of the "elephant lads" in the commission of murders, robberies, frauds, extortions committed in the territory of their native region.

Investigators indicted 22 leaders of the "elephant" group and they all received substantial prison sentences. However, Vyacheslav Ermolov and two bandits (Alexander Gorelov, Sergey Danilevich) managed to escape from arrest, but ordinary "elephants" talked about the criminal cases of their boss, after which this criminal group broke up. “For all” “elephants” earned as many as 214 years in prison with little.

Vyacheslav Ermolov and some other managers of the Slonovskaya gang are on the federal wanted list, according to unofficial information, the leader of the group lives in Europe.

However, there is a point of view according to which the gang has not been eliminated, it just has been structurally modified. Proponents of this theory believe that the "elephant brotherhood" was transformed into state structures and dissolved in the bureaucratic environment. However, this fact has no evidence base.