A gang of “black lumberjacks” from Bolshaya Murta will pay the state 2.7 million rubles (video)

In the Bolshemurtinsky district of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, members of an organized criminal group were convicted of illegal logging. The regional prosecutor's office reported this.

In the fall of 2023, a 37-year-old resident of the village of Bolshaya Murta, who had experience in felling trees and access to equipment, suggested that two of his acquaintances create an organized group for illegal logging. Knowing his capabilities, the accomplices agreed, driven by selfish motives and the promise of a share of the proceeds.

The organizer built a strict hierarchy and assigned roles. He personally cut and bucked trees using a Husqvarna chainsaw. His accomplices were responsible for loading and transporting wood in a ZIL-13 vehicle, as well as for selling it on the Internet.

“To ensure the safety of the group, a “fishkar” was deployed, who carried out secret surveillance of the access roads and warned of danger via cellular communications. Other persons who performed auxiliary functions for loading and unloading, who were unaware of the illegal nature of the activity, were also involved in the criminal activity,” the prosecutor’s office said.

The accomplices cut down forest in specially protected areas and in water protection zones, causing damage to the forest fund in the amount of 2.7 million rubles. Despite the fact that only one of the four defendants admitted guilt in court, the collected evidence, including details of the organization of the organized crime group, left no doubt about the guilt of each.

The court found all members of the group guilty of illegal logging of forest plantations (Part 3 of Article 260 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation) and sentenced them to a sentence of 2.5 years of forced labor with the withholding of 10% of earnings as state income to 4 years of imprisonment in a general regime colony.

In addition, at the request of the prosecutor, the court ordered the accomplices to pay for the damage caused.