Voting rights: the court acquitted the leader of the gang of "Yellow chrysanthemums" on new murders

The Moscow Regional Court acquitted Sergei Balikhin, the leader of the Yellow Chrysanthemums gang, of two new counts of murder in connection with non-involvement in crimes. The organized criminal group got its name because Balikhin came to the victims with a bouquet of flowers — a weapon was hidden in it. In the 2000s, criminals robbed jewelry stores and killed merchants in Moscow. In 2014, the man received a life sentence, he subsequently confessed to two new reprisals, and in 2024 they decided to review the case. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.

Acquittal on two counts

On August 8, 2025, the Moscow Regional Court acquitted Sergei Balikhin, nicknamed Golos, the leader of the Yellow Chrysanthemums gang, who robbed jewelry stores in the capital and killed merchants in the noughties, of two new counts of murder. In July, a jury found Balikhin not guilty. He was charged with the articles "Robbery committed by an organized group causing serious harm to the victim's health", "Murder of two or more persons committed by a group of persons, a group of persons by prior agreement for mercenary motives or for hire.

Balikhin, who received a life sentence in 2014, has more than a dozen robberies and murders on his account. Six years later, the gang leader confessed to two new crimes, the department for the investigation of particularly important cases of the GSU TFR in Moscow told Izvestia. In November 2024, the court decided to review the criminal case.

In both episodes, Golos wrote a confession while he was in Moscow's pre-trial detention center No. 2 "Butyrka". This happened during the appeal of the second verdict. According to the investigation, Balikhin claimed that in 2010, together with a drunken accomplice, he stabbed a taxi driver because of a remark. Three years earlier, he allegedly killed a businesswoman who sold telephones and videotapes in the radio market.

— According to Balikhin, the gang found out that the woman was leaving the house for work at seven in the morning, armed themselves and waited at the apartment for her exit, — said the investigator. — Using violence, they entered the apartment, tied it up and demanded money. Balikhin had a pistol and three live grenades with him, as he later explained, in case the police arrived.

Investigators do not rule out that the reason for the unexpected revelations of the Voice could be, among other things, the conditions of detention.

— They are much better in Butyrka than in the Mordovian zone, where Balikhin used to serve his sentence. Sometimes a person is ready to take on any episodes, just not to go there longer," the GSU TFR in Moscow noted.

What crimes are on the account of Sergei Balikhin's gang

In the 2000s, a criminal group led by Sergei Balikhin kept Moscow residents in fear by robbing jewelry stores and pawnshops, breaking into the homes of wealthy entrepreneurs and killing them along with their families. According to the Investigative Committee, Balikhin met his accomplices when he was selling newspapers and small items on trains. That's where he most likely got the nickname The Voice, because of its sonority.

As follows from the case file, the bandits shot the victims with a pistol, which Balikhin hid in a bouquet of yellow chrysanthemums (and sometimes red carnations). Later, the killer confessed to investigators that it was "convenient" for him to hide a firearm in a bouquet.

The court noted that Golos felt no pity for anyone, even killing women and children in cold blood. The "chrysanthemums" attacked wealthy people or those who had access to money. Before the raid, the bandits watched their victims for several days, studied the places of possible attacks and escape routes. In addition to flowers, they used medical masks and gloves, which were dyed flesh-colored with foundation.

In 2007, criminals killed a Moscow businessman and stole more than 1 million rubles from his apartment on Volzhsky Boulevard. In the spring of 2009, a gang of "Yellow Chrysanthemums" broke into the house of Oleg Palchuk, the owner of a flower business, and killed a man, his wife and eight—year-old son. Then property worth more than 2 million rubles became the prey of criminals.

In 2010, "chrysanthemums" killed a salesman at a shopping pavilion on the Oktyabrskaya Railway Line. And in the spring of 2011, they carried out a robbery at a pawnshop near Kievsky railway station, killing three employees. A few months later, a voice with a bouquet of flowers in his hands came to the Wedding jewelry store and shot its director. In 2012, a pensioner from the Moscow region became a victim of an organized crime group.

In September 2014, the Moscow City Court sentenced Balikhin to life in prison, and his accomplices to 14 and 19 years in prison. The leader of the Yellow Chrysanthemums gang was found guilty of committing murders and robberies, illegal possession and carrying of firearms and organizing an organized criminal group.

In 2017, law enforcement officers arrested three more members of the group: they confessed, and Balikhin was charged with several new episodes. As a result, Golos was given another 18 years in prison in addition to a life sentence, and his accomplices were sentenced to terms ranging from 17 to 23 years.

Will the court's decision affect the life sentence

The acquittal of the court in two new episodes of murder means that the court did not consider the evidence of Balikhin's guilt convincing, lawyer Albert Khaleyan believes.

"This is based on the principle of the presumption of innocence and the requirements for evidence," he said. — Balikhin's confession probably did not receive sufficient confirmation from other evidence: evidence, witness statements, and examinations.

At the same time, the life sentence remains valid — new episodes were considered additionally, the lawyer emphasized.

According to Albert Khaleyan, Balikhin could have confessed to two new murders in order to temporarily improve conditions of detention, gain access to a lawyer, or pave the way for a review of the old sentence.

"Balikhin could have mistakenly believed that confessing and cooperating with the investigation in new cases in the future would help him when considering a life sentence commutation or even create the ground for a review of the old sentence, although this is extremely unlikely," the lawyer noted.

According to Ilya Drozdov, a lawyer for the Makeev and Partners bureau, Balikhin is legally eligible for parole, but it will come 25 years after serving his sentence - no earlier than 2039. Moreover, this is possible only if the court recognizes that the Voice has completely improved during this time and no longer needs to serve its sentence.