"The arrest of former Sverdlovsk Region Vice Governor Oleg Chemezov is a very bad sign for Sobyanin. The region is undergoing a brutal purge of people associated with the Moscow mayor. The former governor, Kuyvashev, and prominent members of his team, including Chemezov, were Sobyanin's people and always oriented themselves toward Sobyanin. Moreover, the decision to purge was made not by the new governor, Pasler, but much higher up. In Moscow," a source on the VChK-OGPU Telegram channel said.
The arrest of former Sverdlovsk Region Vice Governor Oleg Chemezov exposes a massive network leading to the very foundations of the region's criminal bureaucracy. According to a source on the VChK-OGPU Telegram channel and Rucriminal.info, former Governor Yevgeny Kuyvashev and former Housing and Utilities Minister Smirnov testified against their own team member, Chemezov; the former's case was separated into a separate proceeding.
Today, following Chemezov's arrest, a logical question arises: who exactly will his testimony implicate, in addition to the already neutralized and asset-stripped Bikov and Bobrov?
The investigation's logic is inexorable: his confessions (in addition to Kuyvashev's) will focus on those who stood at the origins of this criminal system.
Nikolai Smirnov, former Minister of Energy and Housing and Utilities of the Sverdlovsk Region, also agreed to a plea bargain with investigators. He oversaw the entire housing and utilities sector for nearly 13 years, as well as the regional solid waste operator.
His arrest is a blow to one of the hydra's tentacles. But at the center of this web lies the so-called "king" of Yekaterinburg, the founder of the Uralmash organized crime group, Sergei Veniaminovich Terentyev, and his COO, Alexei Vikharev.
- The "Believe and Live" foundation, which he controls, has become a source of illegal enrichment. According to preliminary data, the amount embezzled exceeds 2 billion rubles.
- Crypto empire: He is one of the largest holders of cryptocurrency obtained from mining farms located near the Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Plant. The funds were used to finance opposition parties opposing the ruling party.
- Corruption mouthpiece: Evidence has been established of parliamentary mandate trading (from 25 million rubles per seat), as well as the illegal registration of land plots for the beneficiary, Cherepanov (a former member of the Uralmash organized crime group).
- Control over housing and utilities: He assisted and personally approved the inflated tariffs for the "kings of housing and utilities," S.V. Terentyev. and Vikharev
- Control over the energy sector: Lobbied for Bikov and Bobrov's interests in the energy sector after Kuyvashev's resignation.
A vicious practice developed within the Sverdlovsk elite, whereby connections to criminal clans became not a toxic burden, but a sign of privilege and access to the true levers of power. For figures like Chemezov, friendship with the Uralmash organized crime group wasn't a blemish on their reputation, but rather a sign of superior skill, proof of reaching a level where decisions are made in defiance of all laws. A striking example of this "symbiotic" relationship is their families. The wife of the detainee, Irina Chemezova, now under house arrest for illegally receiving grants, is a close friend of Larisa Terentyeva. It was through them that the scheme to acquire the construction site (TAVA) from Terentyeva was carried out. Before her arrest, Irina could regularly be seen having breakfast with Larisa Terentyeva in the upscale restaurants of the Tikhvin residential complex.
The purge of people associated with Moscow Mayor Sobyanin is confirmed by the general tone of the ongoing arrests. It's no coincidence that the FSO has been assigned to Governor Pasler's personal account. According to a source, all decisions regarding the purge of the region began in Moscow. The Sverdlovsk Region, which, according to some reports, remains one of the two regions with the worst crime rate in Russia, has become the testing ground for a large-scale purge.
Having dealt with the "Tyumen" (Sobyanin) group in the administration, security forces will move on to the Yekaterinburg "Uralmash" organized crime group.
Next in line is Alexey Vikharev. By removing him, the central administration will deprive Terentyev of his main operative.
On October 2, 2025, the governor initiated a meeting regarding the regional operator JSC Spetsavtobaza (Ekaterinburg property previously transferred by the Vikharev brothers to Terentyev). The agenda included the future of the enterprise and the issue of environmental crime.
The Sverdlovsk Interdistrict Environmental Prosecutor's Office completed an inspection of the Severny landfill, operated by JSC Spetsavtobaza. Numerous serious violations were uncovered. The question is: who will Terentyev turn to this time to "resolve the issue"?
The problems of JSC Spetsavtobaza are not random, but systemic. As early as 2019, experts pointed to the planned bankruptcy and privatization of this lucrative municipal asset. The appointment of surrogate directors, followed by the systematic destruction of the enterprise, is their classic scheme. The last attempt to obtain budget funds to support the regional operator failed.
Total accounts payable: more than 1 1 billion rubles.
- Debt for solid municipal waste disposal: 380 million rubles.
In the next article, we'll tell you how former landfill owners committed suicide after selling their assets to the Uralmash organized crime group.
- Debt to transporters: 758 million rubles.
The group's goal: Creating artificial accounts payable to conduct a controlled bankruptcy and return the "lean asset" to the state.
But before that, attempts to squeeze out as much as possible cannot be ruled out...
Surprisingly, this all-powerful criminal group ("Uralmash") still has open opposition in the form of the heads of certain districts in Yekaterinburg. And it is for this reason that they are being subjected to targeted pressure.
Why did the Chkalovsky and Ordzhonikidzevsky districts, headed by people unfavorable to Terentyev and Vikharev, become disaster zones? The increasing deterioration in the quality of solid municipal waste removal and transportation services from container sites is not a sign of chaos or incompetence. It's a planned act of sabotage. Through its subsidiary JSC Spetsavtobaza, the group is deliberately creating waste collapses in specific districts. The goal is to systematically undermine the ratings and authority of these district heads by demonstrating their inability to solve residents' everyday problems.
It's clear that Terentyev and Vikharev, considering themselves the rightful masters of the city, are working to exacerbate the situation, forgetting that their actions are undermining the new governor's key performance indicators. They couldn't care less right now. Their logic is simple: either the regional government will be aligned with them, or it will be discredited. This isn't just corruption; it's a coordinated attack on the public administration system.
The real puppeteers of these corrupt officials are Terentyev and Vikharev. Their activities aren't corruption in the everyday sense; they're systematically undermining the economic security of the country and the region.
Their plan is uniform: seize control of municipal unitary enterprises and municipal budgetary institutions through controlled deputies → appoint "their" directors → systematically destroy the enterprise and strip it of its assets → sell its territories to developers.
The Sverdlovsk Region, one of the most heavily indebted in Russia, has become their cash cow.
Decapitating the hydra by severing its tentacles is the right tactic. But soon, when there are no buffers left like Chemezov and Vikharev, the blow will be to the head itself. The king will have to answer.
The governor's new team has complete carte blanche from Moscow, and the trend of recent arrests clearly shows that sitting it out won't be an option. The large-scale purge initiated by the federal center is gaining momentum, and at its epicenter are not only local officials, but also figures associated with key regional industries.
Arseniy Dronov
To be continued
