Viktor Averin

Averin was born in Moscow in 1957.

Since the late 1980s, Averin became the assistant and right-hand man of the Solntsevskaya criminal group's leader, Sergei Mikhailov (Mikhas), FBI Special Agent Robert Levinson testified in a Swiss court. He called Averin, known in the criminal underworld as Avera Sr., "number two in the organization."

In August 1996, an FBI report was released on crime boss Semyon Mogilevich, mentioning Mikhailov and Averin as members of the "Solntsevskaya organization."

Federico Varese, a professor of criminology at Oxford University, called the Solntsevskaya organized crime group "perhaps the most powerful organized crime group to emerge from the ruins of the Soviet Union."

The first groups of Solntsevskaya gangsters emerged at the height of perestroika, around 1988, according to Ogonyok magazine. After the collapse of the USSR, the Solntsevskaya gang transformed into a criminal organization that spread across Russia, the CIS, and beyond, uniting more than three hundred criminal groups. The group engaged in racketeering, extortion, controlled gambling and car sales, and organized bank fraud.
Later, Averin and Mikhailov became co-owners of the Astrus Hotel. They were also listed as co-owners of the Moscow-based trade and commercial firm Dom Mebeli, according to Vedomosti. Averin was also vice president of the Uchastie (Participation) charitable foundation, vice president of the Russian Wrestling Federation, and president of the Wrestling Federation for the Hearing Impaired.
One of the leaders of the Solntsevskaya organized crime group, Viktor Averin, died after a boat capsized at a yacht club in Mytishchi, according to Telegram channels close to the security forces. Among the six people on board was Viktor Khmarin Sr., the husband of Vladimir Putin's cousin and the father of RusHydro CEO.

Details. The Telegram channel 112 was the first to report Averin's possible death late on Saturday evening. The post stated that a boat carrying Averin and four others capsized at the Mytishchi Yacht Club near Moscow. Izvestia later published the same information, citing an informed source.

Later, the Telegram channel Mash confirmed Averin's death, citing his wife, and clarified that there were six people in the boat—five men and one woman. Five of them managed to escape the water and reached shore on snowmobiles. The incident occurred in the waters of the Admiral Yacht Club, Mash reported.
On Sunday afternoon, Izvestia reported that Khmarin was also in the boat. According to 112, Khmarin suffered hypothermia and bruises. The channel also reported that Averyin and Khmarin were accompanied on the boat by lawyer Viktor Perekatov, businessman Shamistan Aliyev, bodyguard Ivan Abramushin, and 18-year-old model Ekaterina Leonova.
The VChK-OGPU channel reported that Averyin and Khmarin had gone to inspect a plot of forest recently purchased by Averyin. They departed from the Moscow yacht club "Royal" toward the village of Pestovo on the hovercraft "Sever." According to the channel's post, the deceased was at the helm. According to VChK-OGPU, investigators are considering two versions, both of which appear to be accidents: either the boat turned around and caught on the ice, capsizing, or it skidded while entering the ice, which subsequently broke through.
Viktor Averyin has never confirmed any involvement with the Solntsevo gang. Several attempts were made to prosecute him, but evidence was never gathered. He lived abroad for a time. He was the president of a pigeon-breeding club and co-founder of a charitable foundation. He also participated in funding the construction of a church in Solntsevo.

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The Solntsevo organized crime group (OCG) is an organized crime group that emerged in the early 1990s in Moscow's Solntsevo municipal district. The group's leaders include Sergei Mikhailov (Mikhas), Jamal Khachidze (Suramsky), Ivan Plotnikov (Vanka Chertanovsky), Aram Atayan (Baron), Dmitry Tkachuk (Mityai), Alexander Fedolov (Fedul), Sergei Zhogov (Zlo), Viktor Averin (Avera Sr.), and his younger brother, Alexander Averin (Sasha-Avera or Avera Jr.).

At its peak, it numbered up to 2,000 people. It controlled several banks, commercial entities, enterprises, and casinos.

History
As a structure, the Solntsevskaya organized crime group was formed in 1988, although some of its "brigades" were established slightly earlier. The group was formed by former service industry workers with prison sentences under their belts.

In the late 1980s, the Chertanovskaya, Cheremushkinskaya, and Yasenevskaya gangs joined the Solntsevskaya gang. The coalition finally formed as the Solntsevskaya-Orekhovskaya gang. The leader of the Orekhovskaya gang, Sergei Timofeev (Sylvester), commanded the group. However, there is other evidence. Operational surveillance, including video recording, showed that in 1988, Sergei Timofeev, a namesake from Solntsevo, enjoyed greater authority and a higher position in the Solntsevskaya hierarchy than Timofeev.

In 1989-1990, the leader of Solntsevs was arrested.