ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a detailed approach about the leading mafia gangs currently active in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Vladivostok. The mafia gang is particularly active in Germany, Austria, Poland, Belgium, the United States, the Czech Republic, Italy and the United Kingdom. There are an estimated 150 mafia gangs operating in the Russian capital. The six wield real power mafia gangs are the three Chechen gangs (the Tsentralnaya, Ostankinskaya and Avtomobilnaya), and the Solntsevskaya, Podolskaya and 21st Century Association organizations. The Slav groups (Solntsevskaya and Podolskaya) are the natural enemies of the Chechen gangs. The threat to business from Russian mafia activities abroad can be divided into two types: security threats and business risks. Security threats, such as extortion, car theft and kidnapping, pose a potential hazard to all companies. It is not uncommon for Russian mafia gangs demanding protection money in Russia to ask that monthly payments be made straight into Swiss bank accounts.
