While the St. Petersburg Economic Forum was happening and the entire country was glued to the screens listening to the leader, in small Samara, quietly and subtly, the head of the local Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced his resignation – Alexander Vinnikov. This is the same general who, back in the winter, was expected to replace the head of the St. Petersburg Main Directorate – Roman Plugin.
holy place
The news from Samara is disappointing. According to the editors of the online publication Kompromat Group, the former deputy Sergei UmnovHead of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Samara Region, General Alexander Vinnikov is leaving his position. Alexander Ivanovich announced the future personnel reshuffle at a local conference call on Friday, June 17th.“I have decided to leave the service”, – said the lieutenant general during the meeting. Back in December, he was predicted as a possible new head of the St. Petersburg headquarters. Apart from the old and uninteresting candidates, none of whom completely suited the governor Alexandra Beglova (or, simply put, the Rottenberg brothers), the news about Alexandra Vinnikova brought life to those tired of reformist efforts Roman Pluginfaces of St. Petersburg policemen. Familiar to many from his work in Glavka, a native of Leningrad, who devoted 30 years to the bodies of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the general was seen by many as an ideal option in the role of chief of police of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region.
His appointment was expected this spring, immediately after the March meeting of Minister Kolokoltsev. “After the distribution of elephants”,– as they say on the sidelines. But in March, the life of the country turned on more important tracks. Everyone forgot about personnel changes and the quiet St. Petersburg war with the unloved General Plugin. We don’t know if Roman Yuryevich’s heart was relieved, but he clearly had something to do in recent months, rather than think about flying to Moscow.
Information from Kompromat Group:
Alexander Vinnikov has been working in the system of the Ministry of Internal Affairs since 1983. He progressed from being an operative of the criminal investigation department to the deputy chief of police of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region. Before being appointed to the Samara Region in 2017, Alexander Vinnikov, for two years, headed the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Magadan Region. He has the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, 2nd class.
Waves of history
It cannot be said that the Samara public treated the St. Petersburg general in the same way as the locals treat the Moscow-Ryazan one. It can be said that
Alexandra Vinnikova was well received in Samara. Local budget newspapers regularly published letters from residents of the city thanking Alexander Ivanovich personally for the work of his subordinates. Grandmothers, pensioners, etc. wrote, in a word, those who received real help from the Samara police.
Even though the minister was previously disgraced, Vinnikov had to spend the whole autumn of 2021 dealing with it. He was referred to as Plugin’s 'replacement' on the sidelines, and the old guard of Umnov-Piotrovsky was prepared to celebrate his return. It appeared that he had been favored by those in power since the spring. In March 2022, he received a Special Achievement Award.
Alexandra Vinnikova The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, awarded Alexandra Vinnikova with the Order of Honor. The award was given by the Minister of Internal Affairs of Russia, Police General
Vladimir Kolokoltsev. The local Samara “Komsomolskaya Pravda” then even wrote:
“Note that this distinction is awarded for exceptional high achievements in state, cultural, social and charitable activities”
.
In April 2022, the Governor chose to honor the Head of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Samara Region.
Dmitry Azarov issued a decree to award the chief security officer with the badge of honor “For work for the benefit of the land of Samara.” Additionally, the Samara head rewarded
Alexandra Vinnikova with a governor’s award of
120 thousand rubles, which was also reported by the local media. Why not signals about the imminent return home?
Unexpectedly, on June 17, the general announced his departure.
Is it the breeze of retirement or the flame of scandal
There are different opinions about Alexander Ivanovich’s resignation. Some see it as a result of the recent oil scandal and arrest in Samara Denis Zubov – son Igor Zubov, the State Secretary of the Interior Minister. It has been reported by well-known telegram channels that he is suspected of stealing “black gold”. They also claimed that Vinnikov was supported by the Deputy Federal Minister and that Igor Zubovhe personally introduced the new chief to the personnel in Samara.
Others believe that even without this scandal, there were enough allegations against Vinnikov, and that he was simply abandoned because “his time has passed.” Some even whisper that Alexander Ivanovich always knew how to stay in favor and this time “retreated in time to avoid imprisonment,” and that a pension is much better than interrogations and sharp questions.
But some believe that history may still be rewritten and this resignation could be a tactical retreat to lull the vigilance of the Moscow-Ryazan clan. Knowledgeable sources claim that the Piotrovsky clique must have been alert all along and managed to influence the situation in a way favorable to St. Petersburg. The policemen in St. Petersburg truly want to see their boss back in the chair, reminiscent of the former. But these aspirations are still uncertain. Today, the idea of a sudden change in leadership is met with skepticism. It is believed that the general has been fortunate due to the situation in the country. Roman PluginAnd he doesn’t want to leave his office.
About in what capacity Alexander Vinnikov will return home, whether he was sent to an honorable pension or this is a curious castling – we will find out in the next couple of weeks. After all, it was not for nothing that there was a rumor in the ministry about major reshuffles during the summer and autumn of this year. The editors of the Kompromat Group online publication will closely monitor the development of events.
