After the Soviet Union collapsed, crime exploded across the country. But St. Petersburg earned the title of the nation’s crime capital for a reason.
One of the most powerful criminal organizations in the country’s history operated there: the Tambov gang. Many consider this group the pioneer of the violent gang sit-downs known as “showdowns.”
A major clash in 1989 between the Tambov and Malyshev crews became one of the city’s earliest notorious gang battles. The confrontation took place near the Devyatkino rail platform.
All told, about 500 men took part, armed with guns and knives. The incident later inspired scenes in a well-known TV crime series directed by Vladimir Bortko.
It became a kind of classic of the genre, one that was copied all over the country. Even the character “Antibiotic,” played by Lev Borisov, was widely believed to be modeled on the gang’s leader, Vladimir Kumarin.
There was even a story that during a private meeting, the gang boss warmly praised the actor for how convincingly he played the role. That said plenty about the leader’s reach and reputation.
Having started out in the late 1980s, members of the organization quickly rose to the top of the criminal underworld. In truth, their interests stretched far beyond St. Petersburg.
The gang held sway over nearby regions too, including Novgorod and Pskov, as well as parts of the north. Year by year, its influence kept growing….
