The first English-language book to document the men who emerged from the
gulags to become Russia's much-feared crime class: the vory v zakone 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 group that has survived and
thrived amid the changes brought on by 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.