The Vory: Russia's Super Mafia

· Yale University Press
4.4
10 reviews
Ebook
478
Pages
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About this ebook

The first English-language book to document the men who emerged from the Soviet-era gulags to become Russia’s international criminal class.

Mark Galeotti is the go-to expert on organized crime in Russia, consulted by governments and police around the world. Now, Western readers can explore the fascinating history of the vory v zakone, a criminal organization that has survived and thrived through Stalinism, the Cold War, the Afghan War, and the end of the Soviet experiment.

The vory—as the Russian mafia is also known—was born early in the twentieth century, largely in the Gulags and criminal camps, where they developed their unique culture. Identified by their signature tattoos, members abided by the thieves’ code, a strict system that forbade all paid employment and cooperation with law enforcement and the state. Based on two decades of on-the-ground research, Galeotti’s captivating study details the vory’s journey to power from their early days to their adaptation to modern-day Russia’s free-wheeling oligarchy and global opportunities beyond.

Ratings and reviews

4.4
10 reviews
A Google user
May 4, 2018
Very interesting and scary at the same time. Russians lost once, hope they loose this one too.
2 people found this review helpful
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EXPLORER EXPOSER
October 27, 2020
very costly. please help me Google Play Books team. make it affordable for senior citizens and retired persons.
1 person found this review helpful
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Drue Andersen
October 9, 2022
grey read so far!!
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About the author

Mark Galeotti is a senior researcher at the Institute of International Relations, Prague. An expert and prolific author on transnational crime and Russian security affairs, he has also advised the British Foreign Office and many government and law enforcement agencies in Europe and North America.

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