This is the face and the proper attitude of a true Russian mobster
He's what they call a criminal authority, the vory v zakone, or in English, the thieves in law
For someone so camera shy, he's been caught on camera too many times in his life — and in death
The Mob Reporter here with the underworld story of Ando the Lame, an unlucky fellow who plays an
unwitting role in recent changes to how the Russian government takes on its top gangsters
Andranik Harutyunyan, better known as Ando the Lame, had more misfortune than
just his unflattering nickname. Back in 2016, he was spotted with some pals in a restaurant in Moscow
when he shouldn't have been in Russia at all. While this was something that normally might not have
caused great commotion, Ando was seen there at a particularly awkward time — just as the Russian
government was making plans to crack down on its underworld elite. What better way to announce a
tough new stance against criminal bosses than to bag one in the capital city and send him on
a perp walk. And if the vor is true to his nature, meaning refusing to cooperate in the slightest,
it will perfectly illustrate why a new weapon is needed to crack these particularly tough nuts
And so they picked Ando and he played his role to perfection. This arrest was in March 2016.
It was unveiled by Anatoly Yakunin, the head of Moscow's ministry of internal affairs
as he publicly declared war on the vory v zakone
The chief warned of a new tactic to hit the top bosses of the Russian underworld, a powerful new
law to hit at the top, the criminal authorities, meaning the vor. The logic goes like this —
cops usually catch the grunts, the soldiers, the lower-level thugs and crooks who do the dirty
work while the bosses who give the orders sit back and maintain the appearance of innocence
The bosses don't like to get their hands dirty and so it is rare to prove serious crimes against them
Oh they may get found with a gun, just like Ando the Lame and his friends were, and they might get
a couple of years in prison where they are doted on by fellow inmates and often by guards who he
bribes or threatens. Anatoly Yakunian said enough is enough, announcing a new strategy against the
top mob bosses. He warned that a change to Russian law was making it a serious offense to just be a
boss, even if there isn't evidence of participating in any specific crimes. It was called article 210.1
and the punishment for occupying the highest position in the criminal hierarchy
as the law was worded, would be significant — 10, 15, 20 years in prison, or even life. He said
the new law presented by Vladimir Putin was quickly passed and one month after the showy
arrest of Ando the Lame, article 210.1 became law. But this weapon was harder to handle than Yakunian
thought
The first major test case was against an alleged voy named Zakhary Kalashov
also known as Shakro Molodoi. He was arrested in grand fashion at his huge and garishly
decorated mansion, as seen here. That was in 2016, a few months after the new law was announced
But that case fell apart under strong legal challenge
In 2017, Russian authorities finally hit the mark
A man known as Mamuka Chkadua was convicted for being a mob boss and sentenced to 17 years
The legal victory was hailed by police as creating precedence for other cases
But there seemed to be a lot of wrinkles still to be ironed out
Luckily for them, the new law gives police a lot of wiggle room. An alleged vor can
be arrested and held in prison without bail for a year and a half while police and prosecutors
gather evidence to build their case. That log jam, however, suddenly appears to have broken
In the past couple of weeks, article 210.1 cases have been chased with new vigor. One case has
finally been scheduled for trial, a rarity. That accused vor was arrested in Russia's Tomsk region
last year. Here is video of the arrest. The special forces team looks a bit uncertain, to be honest
But I'm sure I would too if I was bursting into a vor's home unannounced
But he offered no resistance, He stands accused of being the top underworld criminal authority
in the region for at least the last eight years. In recent days, there have been several other
vory arrested, sent to trial, or declared fugitives in article 210.1 investigations
And in Moscow a much bigger fish may soon follow
Rashad Ismayilov, currently serving a sentence in Belarus for arms trafficking,
also now faces prosecution for occupying the highest position in the criminal hierarchy
He is accused of being the new underworld boss of Moscow itself. If true, then that would be a
significant achievement. And a suitable milestone in the new law that Ando the Lame helped usher
in. But why isn't it used against Ando himself, the man who was made the face of the new law?
Well he met an even grimmer fate. And the dreaded cameras were rolling then too
In 2018, two years after getting booted from Russia, Ando was arrested in Armenia. His arrest
came a day after the homes of more than three dozen other crime bosses in the region were
raided and searched in a major sweep. He was held then on suspicion of drug trafficking
after police found a rifle and ammunition in his home along with suspected narcotics, but he
didn't remain in custody long and when he was out, but still in Armenia just last summer, he was shot
Ando was in a gazebo in the courtyard of a house in Armenia's capital, along with his friends
But when a gunman appeared, everyone scattered. The assassin, however, had eyes only for Ando
Ando didn't make it far. He was hit twice in the shoulder, once in the back, and once to the head
Police were called to the hospital, where someone took him after the shooting. Police arrived to
find Ando's body. The Russian gunman arrived from Chechnya, and he had help from others. Ando was 45
A few months later, an Armenian-born world kickboxing champion was killed on the
street in Moscow. Here he is visiting a Moscow martial arts club. He was famous among fighters
It is believed that this boxer, Ashot Bolena, arranged to have Ando killed over a gambling debt
owed by the boxer to the vor. The boxing champ was shot dead in retaliation
Because the vor still had friends
Thanks for watching