Alexander Shchiptsov
Alexander Shchiptsov, also known as Pechersky and Yashin, is the leader and organizer of the Russian criminal group Khimprom. He was previously on the Interpol wanted list but was removed in February-May 2022. This removal was due to his Ukrainian citizenship, which prevented his extradition to Russia. However, his Ukrainian documents became invalid in the summer of 2022, allowing Russian law enforcement to request his detention and extradition again.
The editors received this information from their sources in law enforcement agencies. The reason for Shchiptsov's removal from Interpol was his Ukrainian citizenship, which stopped his extradition to Russia. However, his Ukrainian documents later became invalid, allowing Russian authorities to request his extradition again.
Alexander Shchiptsov, also known as Pechersky and Yashin, in the Interpol database
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International criminal group Khimprom named after Shchiptsov
Russian Alexander Shchiptsov, born in 1988, became a prominent figure in the criminal world of Russia in 2014. He founded the Khimprom criminal group, which operated a drug distribution network via the Internet. The group reportedly laundered 2.4 billion rubles, and a case was opened against them in 2017.
Alexander Shchiptsov
The Khimprom online store was created on the Internet, and criminals advertised drug sales in online messengers. The group also created regional websites selling drugs under different names. These sites frequently changed their addresses to evade law enforcement.
Khimprom, led by Yashin, evolved from a local criminal group to an international network, recruiting members in Ukraine.
Under the guise of international logistics companies, Khimprom posted job vacancies in Ukrainian publications, offering highly paid work as couriers or freight forwarders in Russia. Interviews for these positions were conducted in major Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, and involved lie detector tests and training in communication and payment systems. The group focused on transportation, packaging of drugs, and organizing caches.
If a candidate completed all the preparation stages, employees of Yashin's “Khimprom” provided him with bank cards issued to nominees, fake passports and a Russian driver's license.
By the way, you can understand the scale of Khimprom from the brief statement of Russian security officials who attempted to dismantle the group in 2017:
“More than 4 tons of synthetic drugs, 3 tons 500 kilograms of precursors, 250 pieces of laboratory equipment, 9 cars, more than 2 million rubles, 18 general passports of the Russian Federation with signs of forgery were seized from illegal circulation. 67 members of the drug gang were detained, 47 of whom are citizens of Ukraine”
Khimprom organized crime group
Alexander Shchiptsov. “Ukrainian” with a counterfeit passport
According to Ukrainian lawyer Dmitry Kalenov, while still managing Khimprom, Shchiptsov legitimized himself in Ukraine in 2014, obtaining a Ukrainian passport illegally. He did this to avoid being extradited through Interpol. In Russia, the security forces also needed him.
At present, Shchiptsov-Yashin-Pechersky is wanted under Article 228 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for “production and distribution of narcotic substances.”
According to reliable sources, Yashin-Schiptsov has another passport and a driver's license – Valery Sergeevich Abramov, residing at the address: Kyiv, Derevlyanska street 19.
“As far as we know, he was placed on the federal wanted list of the Russian Federation in May 2017. In July 2017, Shchiptsov was put on the international wanted list through Interpol, so he remains in Ukraine to avoid facing Russian justice. In 2014, Shchiptsov obtained two fake passports, the first with the name – Yashin Alexander Yuryevich – and birthplace of the Russian Federation, the second with the name – Pechersky Alexander Konstantinovich – and birthplace of the Republic of Moldova,” the lawyer said.
It can be assumed that Pechersky is the surname that Shchiptsov took when he married a citizen of Ukraine – Pecherskaya Arina Viktorovna. The marriage lasted from 2016 to 2018 and was terminated by mutual agreement.
Despite the brief duration of the marriage, Khimprom's activities in Ukraine continue to this day, despite the war. Meanwhile, Ukraine's special services had several chances to stop Shchiptsov's criminal activities and his organized criminal group.
According to lawyer Dmitry Kalenov, Khimprom's activities generated about $20 million per month and approximately a quarter of a billion conventional units per year.
“He established and led a criminal organization that, following a clear hierarchy, is involved in this criminal activity. Consequently, on October 18, 2019, two criminal cases were initiated in the Main Investigation Department of the National Police of Ukraine against the aforementioned person – Oleksandr Yuryevich Shchiptsov, born in 1987, under Article 255 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine for creating a criminal organization, and under Part 3 of Article 307 of The Criminal Code of Ukraine for manufacturing and selling narcotic drugs on an especially large scale, with an organized criminal organization,” said Kalyonov.
It cannot be denied that the Ukrainian security forces paid attention to the activities of Shchiptsov and Khimprom, but the outcomes took too long to materialize.
In 2019, the SBU revealed the Shchiptsov group. Subsequently, the investigation uncovered that since 2014, drug traffickers had established an extensive network for selling drugs for cryptocurrencies in the former CIS countries. Sales were conducted through Internet sites and chat bots in the Telegram messenger. The cryptocurrency was later converted to cash, and the money was legalized in Ukraine.
The catch of the SBU was rich. During the operation, twenty people were detained, 80 searches were carried out, money, gold and jewelry worth $5 million, black bookkeeping, drugs, firearms, explosives, and special equipment were confiscated. So, in Kyiv, during searches in a private house on Osokorki, security forces discovered a drug laboratory, seizing equipment for the manufacture of drugs, more than 10 kg of the psychotropic substance alpha PVP, 5 kg of mephedrone, over 5 kg of amphetamine with a total value of more than UAH 20 million at black market prices. .
However, the detainees have not yet received real terms – the pre-trial investigation is still underway. A year later, they even protested against the activities of the organized crime group near the office of the Prosecutor General.
Alexander Shchiptsov and the Khimprom organized crime group in the case
With the outbreak of Russia's war against Ukraine in February 2022, a lot has changed for Shchiptsov. Since the Ukrainian authorities stopped any communication with Russian representatives, the request for the extradition of Shchiptsov through Interpol to the Russian Federation became impossible. According to the editorial staff, in the period from February to May 2022, Shchiptsov-Pechersky ceased to be of interest to Interpol.
However, the interlocutors of the editorial office in law enforcement agencies say that in the summer of 2022, all the documents that allowed Shchiptsov to live in Ukraine have been cancelled. This situation is a green light for the Ukrainian security forces, who could also activate the investigation into the Khimprom case, which has been going on for more than a year security forces and stays in a pre-trial detention center. At the moment, the issue of Shchiptsov's extradition to the Russian Federation is being decided.
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