Time in Yerevan: 11:07,   19 March 2024

Crime boss charged as Armenia police target mafia royalty

Crime boss charged as Armenia police target mafia royalty

YEREVAN, JUNE 22, ARMENPRESS. Yerevan authorities are probing the suspected illegal acquisition and possession of narcotics by a local crime figure.

The investigative committee said that on June 20 officers searched the home of Alexander Makaryan, a crime figure considered to be a “thief-in-law”, who is an ethnic Armenian but a Russian citizen, and found over 11.19 grams of marijuana in his possession.

On June 21, Makaryan, aka Alo, was charged for illegal acquisition and possession of narcotics. The prosecutor filed a motion to the court to remand the suspect in custody,

The investigation continues, the investigative committee said.

This phenomenon, known as thief-in-law, emerged in the infamous Soviet gulags and became a prison culture in most of post-Soviet states.

“Thief-in-law” is a specifically granted formal status of a professional criminal who enjoys an elite position within the organized crime environment and employs informal authority over its lower-status members. Criminals are “crowned” as thieves-in-law by senior members of the organized crime syndicates for many years of contributions to the criminal business or long record behind bars.

Thieves-in-law are known for their distinctive tattoos and code of conduct.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan

 








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