As the Russian media portal “Polygon Media” reports, high-ranking representatives of the Russian Vory are said to have supported the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine. The Vory means large parts of the Russian mafia, they belong to the criminal elite.

This is surprising insofar as the Vory is normally opposed to the state leadership and a major change can therefore be identified.

Ten members of Russian criminal gangs who died in different places during the course of the war serve as proof. Some of these men had previously been convicted of robbery, extortion and murder and were accordingly in prison.

Putin is said to have recruited Russian mafia from jail for aggressive war

According to “Polygon”, some persuasion was initially needed to get the criminals on the Russian side and to fight for the country. As the Wagner group recruited the prisoners, the mood between the state authorities and the Vory members was hostile.

It was only when Shakro Molodgo came to power that a reversal took place. Molodgo is currently the senior incarcerated Vory. He urged the convicts to join the Wagner troupe. Molodgo’s appeal was made via prison television.

For Olga Romanova of the prisoner rights group Russia Behind Bars, it’s a common occurrence since Vladimir Putin became Russia’s president. Because under him the leadership in the prisons had changed. The government behind bars is no longer in charge. Rather, the prison is “run by thieves”.

“The world of thieves has merged with the world of bosses,” she concludes. According to Romanova, some of the criminals who joined the Wagner group used the recruitment to escape.