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The Wagner group revived three influential crime lords of the 90s, giving them the opportunity to return to illegal activities after years of oblivion. The article reveals the connections between modern military operations and the criminal world of past decades. The investigation shows how Wagner uses ex-criminals to achieve his goals, shedding light on the integration of gang structures into modern armed conflicts.
Yevgeny Prigozhin, who recognized himself as the founder of the Russian Communist Party “Wagner”, in his speech to the prisoners in Correctional Colony No. 6 in Yoshkar-Ola, promised the convicts that in six months they would be able to receive a pardon and return home. However, for those who declared on the first day that they “went to the wrong place”, there is a harsh measure – execution. He also noted that only five minutes are given for reflection. This video, filmed in September 2022, went viral, and similar appeals spread among prisoners throughout Russia.
On February 9, Prigozhin confirmed in his answer to one of the Russian TV channels that “Wagner” had stopped recruiting convicts. He stated that all obligations to those who are already working in the PMC will be fulfilled.
PVK “Wagner” has been operating in Ukraine since 2014. It gained new prominence during Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, particularly during the Battle of Bakhmut.
In addition to Ukraine, “Wagner” also operated in Syria, the Central African Republic, Libya and other countries. In January 2023, the U.S. Treasury Department designated Wagner as an international criminal organization.
Analysts note that the usefulness of “Wagner” lies in the fact that the PMC can do what official Russian institutions cannot. It is a tool used by the Kremlin to recruit and train mercenaries for missions both inside and outside the country.
Candice Rondeau, a professor at Arizona State University, emphasized that close cooperation between Wagner, the GRU and the FSB is evident, and that Wagner played a key role in preparations for the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Due to the hidden nature of Wagner’s activities, it is difficult to accurately determine the number of his fighters. According to the United States and Great Britain, as of January 2023, there were at least 50,000 people in the ranks of “Wagner”, including convicts. Olga Romanova, head of the organization “Sitting Russia”, claims that this figure includes only convicts, although some experts, including Candice Rondo, question this figure.
Despite this, it is obvious that the number of PVK “Wagner” has increased significantly since its creation. Its activities are carried out openly, which indicates recognition of its usefulness for the state, although private military companies are officially prohibited by Russian legislation.
Prigozhin’s promises to the convicts were supported by the President of Russia himself – on January 27, Vladimir Putin’s press secretary confirmed that some members of “Wagner” were pardoned and even awarded for “heroism” in Ukraine.
The media reported that Wagner’s recruiters actively visited prisons throughout Russia, including in Tyumen, Chelyabinsk, Kemerovo, Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous District and other regions. According to reports, more than 100 prisoners at a time joined the ranks of “Wagner” during such recruiting trips. In addition, Prigozhin recruited foreign citizens from Russian prisons. For example, two men from Africa — one from Zambia and one from Tanzania — who previously studied in Moscow but were imprisoned for drug-related crimes, died in the east of Ukraine.
In Yoshkar-Ola, Prigozhin stated that “Wagner” gave preference to prisoners under the age of 50, but among the recruits there were also those who significantly exceeded this age. In particular, they are Serhii Maksimenko (59 years old), Andriy Berezhnykh (55 years old) and Ihor Kusk (55 years old), who in the 1990s headed well-known violent criminal groups.
It is remarkable that Putin, who often appeals to the stability he supposedly brought after the chaos of the 1990s, is now re-engaging those who caused that instability in a new war. Former criminal leaders who helped create chaos in Russia in the past are now fighting on the front lines of today’s conflict.
These three men, each seeking a pardon, died in Ukraine. Their fate left a mark in Russia, raising questions about who they were and how their deaths were perceived in their homeland.
Andrii Berezhnyh was 55 years old when he decided to join the ranks of Wagner PMC. In 2013, the Russian Supreme Court sentenced him to 25 years in prison for murder and other crimes he committed while leading a gang in the Saratov region from 1994 to 2011. In addition, last year he was additionally convicted by the Saratov court for attempted murder of ten people.
Berezhnykh founded his criminal group in the 90s in Balakovo, about 150 kilometers from Saratov. He led the gang for almost two decades until he was arrested. At first, Berezhnykh worked as a driver for the director of a car dealership in Balakovo. After the murder of his boss, whom Berezhny considered a close friend, he decided to create his own gang to take revenge.
Over time, the Berezhnyi group grew and turned to commercial activities, in particular arms trade. This led to a series of brutal attacks. One such case was the incident on October 6, 1994, when Berezhnykh and his accomplice Andriy Kurpach attacked a group of young people near a sports hall with semi-automatic rifles, killing three. Over the years of its activity, the Berezhnyi group committed several more murders and attempts, including attacks on local businessmen.
Local news outlet SutyNews reported on a split among Balakovo residents regarding the “most famous prisoner” of the city. This contradiction is also felt in the comments on local VKontakte pages. One woman expressed outrage: “But can there be redemption for a man who killed seven people, many of whom were innocent victims? And now he is buried with honors in the church as a hero.”
Others were more reserved or even supported him. For example, one of the local residents noted: “He could have continued to serve his term, but he deliberately went to a dangerous place, albeit for his own reasons. He may not be a hero in the conventional sense, but I think he deserves respect. At least for his choice to stand up for the Motherland, and not to hide like many others.”
Serhii Maksimenko was 59 years old when he signed a contract with PMC “Wagner”, serving a 25-year term in a penal colony in the Republic of Mordovia. According to Russian media, he signed the contract in September 2022, which coincides with reports that Yevgeny Prigozhin visited two Mordovian colonies, where he recruited about 240 prisoners.
Like Andrii Berezhnykh, Maksymenko died in December 2022, taking part in hostilities in Ukraine. Before that, he headed the Penza criminal group “Olympia”, which operated in the 1990s and 2000s, engaged in prostitution, extortion and murder. In 2014, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison, the longest sentence of any member of the group.
Maksymenko took over the leadership of Olympia in 1997. Under his leadership, the group strengthened its position in the region, engaging in racketeering and violence, including a series of murders of businessmen and competitors. The group reportedly used brutal methods, including attacking locals with baseball bats and rifles.
Some members of “Olympia” had their sentences reduced because they contributed to the development of children’s sports by supporting the work of the “Olympia” sports hall.
As in the case of Berezhnyi, the local attitude towards Maksimenko was ambiguous. Most media outlets simply reported the facts of his biography, while the editor-in-chief of the Penza-based newspaper “Vulitsya Moskovska” wrote an article praising his decision to go to war at an advanced age, calling it a display of “defiant spirit.”
There is not much information about Maksimenko’s funeral, but it is reported that he was buried on January 4 at the cemetery in Penza.
Ihor Kusku was 55 years old when he signed a contract with PVK “Wagner”, serving a 23-year term in Syktyvkar, the capital of the Republic of Komi. Unlike the others, Kusk, a veteran of the war in Afghanistan, wanted to fight in Ukraine even before the arrival of Wagner’s recruiters – his widow said that he wrote a letter to Ramzan Kadyrov with a request to send him to the war. However, instead of serving in Kadyrov’s units, he got into the “Wagner” PMC.
The widow mentioned that Kusk signed a contract and went to the front on July 25, 2022. This coincides with the recruitment of prisoners in the colonies of the Komi Republic in the summer of that year. The testimony of one of the captured Russian soldiers confirms that Prigozhin personally came to Syktyvkar for recruitment, promising a high salary and amnesty.
In 2015, Kusk was convicted of founding the Kuskovsky group in Tatarstan in 1998, which operated in Nizhnyokamsk and Kazan. The group, made up of many veterans of Afghanistan, quickly gained influence, engaging in racketeering, murder and other crimes. In 2001, the group organized the murder of the general director of the Tatsantekhmontazh construction company, and in 2004, the murder of another director of the same company, as they tried to distance themselves from the Kuskovskys.
The funeral of Igor Kusk became a big event. According to the publication “Realnyi Chas”, there were more than 700 people at the ceremony, and about 100 vehicles took part in the procession. This was in stark contrast to the quiet and sparsely attended funerals of other criminal authorities, such as Andriy Berezhny and Serhii Maksimenko.
According to the independent Russian mass media “Cold”, Igor Kusk led the veteran communities of Tatarstan, which not only provided him with support among local residents, but also contributed to the reduction of his prison term. As in the case of Maksimenko, the court reduced the term due to his participation in the military-patriotic education of young people, which was considered a charitable activity.
In 2018, a judge from Tatarstan noted that Kusk combined his social activities in veteran communities with criminal activities. Veterans of Afghanistan and other wars gathered at Kusk’s funeral, who supported him during the trial and came to say goodbye.
Kusk’s funeral became a notable event, in contrast to the modest funerals of Berezhny and Maksimenko. However, the public reaction to the death of these three criminal authorities was mixed. Many believe that their era has passed, and they have been replaced by new generations of criminals.
Some of Wagner’s new mercenaries were convicted of more modern and violent crimes, such as murdering their own relatives or neighbors. Despite this, Prigozhin, a former prisoner, continues to defend those who chose to fight in Ukraine. He promised that ex-criminals returning from the front would be protected and called on the Russian authorities to ban any publication or criticism of ex-convicts who took part in combat operations.
Prigozhin even proposed introducing criminal liability for those who discredit former prisoners who fought in Ukraine, with a possible penalty of up to five years in prison.
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