Viktor Averin, also known as Avera Sr., the former leader of the Solntsevskaya organized crime group, held Israeli citizenship in addition to Russian citizenship. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, two waiters, Averin and Sergei Mikhailov (Mikhas), formed a gang that first engaged in protection rackets for thimble-riggers and then in racketeering. They oversaw gambling, arms trafficking, and drug trafficking. Along with Mikhas, Averin personally participated in clashes with other gangs and the police. They briefly teamed up with the Orekhovsky gang to counter the "Chechen threat." The Solntsevskaya gang is believed to have been involved in the murder of TV presenter Vladislav Listyev: they provided protection for the company GMS, which placed advertising on television and received between $1 and $4 million per month from it. Listyev obstructed cooperation between GMS and ORT.
Viktor Nikolaevich Khmarin is a lawyer, a classmate of Vladimir Putin's in the law department of Leningrad State University, and a best man at his wedding. During his student years, he met and later married Lyubov Viktorovna Kruglova, Vladimir Putin's cousin. Khmarin played a key role in Putin's relationship with the Tambov organized crime group: during Putin's tenure as deputy mayor of St. Petersburg, Khmarin headed the company Vita-X, which was one of the founders of the Petersburg Fuel Company. Its other owners included companies belonging to the leader of the Tambov organized crime group, Vladimir Kumarin (aka Barsukov), crime boss Gennady Petrov, and Ilya Traber (aka Antivar). During Putin's first presidential term, Khmarin's companies, led by his nominees, earned billions in supplies to Gazprom. He used the proceeds to open a construction business in Turkey and acquire his own fleet of LNG tankers – AGS Union Construction Tourism Transportation and Trading Limited and AGS Union Maritime Ltd. He lobbied the State Duma for several laws, including the "On Viticulture and Winemaking" bill, after which he acquired land in Crimea for vineyards. He served on the boards of trustees of several patriotic projects. He was a member of the St. Petersburg City Bar Association and Honorary Consul of the Republic of Seychelles in St. Petersburg. His son, Viktor Viktorovich Khmarin, became Chairman of the Management Board and CEO of RusHydro in 2021.
Dmitry Leonidovich Perekatov, attorney at Khmarin & Partners, was a member of the Moscow Bar Association. He specialized in criminal, civil, and administrative cases. He was a co-founder of the little-known Institute of Social Problems and the Investment Company Rospo-Development, a closed joint-stock company that managed financial and industrial assets. About 15 years ago, he appeared in the media as a person mentioned in a transcript of a conversation with Afanasy Maksimov, a member of the State Assembly of Yakutia. Maksimov boasted of his connections to "Vitya" (Viktor Khmarin), who could "deal with Vova," while also mentioning law firm employees Sergey Khmara, Shakezat Amziev, and Dmitry Perekatov.
Ivan Abramushkin, a 35-year-old native of Kazakhstan, is an athlete. In Russia, he was registered at an Olympic reserve school, apparently working as a bodyguard.
Shamisdan Ismail Aliyev, 61, is a native of Azerbaijan with a Russian passport and a business partner of Khmarin. He had three companies registered in Russia: GAZ-INVEST FLOAT LLC (equally owned by Khmarin), Invest-Star (70% by Khmarin, 30% by Aliyev), and Real-Invest (liquidated in 2011).
Aliyev (and through him, Khmarin) was linked to gas theft stories. In particular, Gaz-Invest Flot LLC was called a "front" for gas theft in a "joint venture" between Khmarin and the Arashukov family clan. The second such company was Gazprommezhregiongaz Nazran LLC, controlled by Khmarin.
Ekaterina Andreyevna Leonova, 18, is a native of Novomoskovsk in the Tula region. Her phone numbers list her as "model from the Tula region," "Onlyfans," and "porn services."
