Russian Organized Crime

By Fred Burton and Dan Burges
Stratfor
Terrorism Intelligence Report

When the dust settled following a bus explosion in Togliatti, Russia, on Oct. 31, few explanations emerged as to who was responsible for the attack, which killed eight people and injured at least 50. Although terrorism is a possibility, two leading theories place the blame on Russian organized crime.

One such theory suggests that a person (or people) riding the bus was a target of the Russian mob and the other casualties simply collateral damage. Though this act might seem excessive, Russian organized crime has a history of ensuring that it eliminates its targets through excessive use of explosives. A second theory is that Russian organized crime targeted the bus itself as retribution against the bus company, perhaps because the company refused to pay protection money to the mob.

Given the speculation, it is a good time to explore the nature of Russia's crime syndicates and to examine just how far they reach and the lengths they will go to ensure that they maintain an iron grip on the enterprises under their control.

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