Revenge of the werewolves: Izvestia found out the reason for the murder of a detective in the 90s

The Investigative Committee of Russia reported on the discovery of the murder of a married couple committed in 1999 and the detention of one of the accomplices, a 65—year-old Muscovite with a criminal past who previously served in the internal affairs bodies. Izvestia correspondents learned the details of the tragedy and talked with a friend of the deceased officer.

Later retribution

The crime committed 26 years ago was solved by the staff of the Investigative Committee.

Photo: Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation

— On November 6, 1999, the bodies of an operative of the criminal investigation department of one of the police departments of the capital and his wife with multiple gunshot wounds were found in the apartment of a residential building on Ryazansky Prospekt in Moscow. The victims were discovered by their 9-year—old son, who was visiting his neighbors at the time of the crime, according to a statement on the official TFR channel.

The victim of the criminals was police Major Vladimir Lilak, senior operative of the Department of Internal Affairs "Ryazansky Prospekt. At that time, he was known for his productive work on drug trafficking and car theft cases.

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A new twist

The investigation has been stalled for many years due to the specifics of the deceased's work, a source close to the investigation said. The operative had many detractors because of his service in the criminal investigation department, and the investigation worked out dozens of versions related to his professional activities, including possible revenge from drug dealers or ethnic criminal groups.

A breakthrough in the case came only recently, when investigators, reviewing archival materials, suspected Lilak of murdering his former colleagues. In particular, the previously convicted Arkady Z., who from 1983 to 1986 worked as an inspector at the police station where the victim served. In 1991, he was convicted of robbery, and in 1993— for escaping from prison. He was released on the eve of Lilak's murder in 1999.

An analysis of his biography showed that this man could have committed the murder of a colleague. The fact is that Z. committed a similar crime in 2008 — he shot his neighbor after a domestic quarrel.

Photo: TASS/Artem Korotaev

— The operatives then asked him a question about the murder of Major Lilak, but he abruptly cut off the interrogation. He said: don't ask me such questions anymore," says a source familiar with the investigation. — Then there was no evidence of his involvement, and words and speculation cannot be pinned to the case. However, we brought up the polygraph data obtained at the same time in 2008 — they showed a mixed reaction to the question of committing other crimes with the use of weapons.

Changed his color

During the operational development, extensive characterization material was collected on Z., and at the end of November he was detained and confessed during interrogation.

According to him, the motive was not official harassment, but a domestic quarrel. Z., who returned from prison, drank alcohol with another former policeman, Igor S., who was previously convicted of abuse of office and theft (he died in 2014). In a drunken stupor, they decided to visit Lilak, who allegedly said something unflattering about them among former colleagues.

Photo: Global Look Press/Viktor Chernov/Russian Look

Curiously, Z. He served his sentence in the so-called "black" zone, that is, in a penal colony where criminal authorities are tacitly subordinated, although he was supposed to get to the "red" zone, where the regime is completely controlled by the administration and where former law enforcement officers are supposed to serve their sentences. Z. was probably deeply imbued with the so-called "thieves' concepts" and suggested that S. "ask for the bazaar" from a colleague. It is worth mentioning that the motive is known only from the words of Z., who could distort the real reasons for the massacre.

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Details of the massacre

Z. He told the investigators how he dealt with Lilak and his wife. He and S. went up to the opera's apartment on the fourth floor almost immediately after Lilak came home from work — the officer himself opened the door to the killers and let them in. They sat down on the sofa and started a conversation in raised tones, after which they shot Lilak. The policeman's wife came running from the kitchen, and Z. shot her several times. The wounded Lilak tried to resist, but Z. I shot him several more times until the TT pistol ran out of bullets. It is noteworthy that the criminals did not take Lilak's service weapon with them — the holster with a pistol was lying on the table in the room. The boy who discovered his father's body did not immediately find out that he had lost his mother, whose body lay in the back room.

Retired police officer Viktor Solopov remembers Vladimir Lilak with warmth and pain. They met in 1981 at the Moscow Secondary Special Police School. We studied at different courses, but we became close on the basis of sports — both were engaged in SAMBO. According to Solopov, Lilak came to school as a prepared and mature person, like most of the cadets of that time.

— We all had crosses in our ranks here: an excellent student of the border troops, an excellent student of the internal troops. We were all already retired," says Viktor Pavlovich.

Photo: RIA Novosti/Utarbekov

Before joining, Vladimir served as a conscript in a special regiment of the internal troops in the Caucasus, detaining armed criminals and suppressing mass riots.

—Vladimir Lilak is a truly correct policeman who did not betray his comrades, honestly performed his duties, and treated his family and beloved wife with reverence,— says Izvestia's interlocutor. — A man who could be trusted with his back.

Retired Major Solopov believes that the murder could be related to revenge for Lilak's participation in the liquidation of a band of robbers from among the renegade militiamen. It was for such a crime that Arkady Z. was convicted. A friend and colleague of the murdered operative is closely monitoring the progress of the investigation.

What's with the timing

In cases of murders committed 20-30 years ago, the statute of limitations is an extremely complex and relevant topic, says Alexey Gavrishev, lawyer and managing partner of AVG Legal.

"But one thing is important here: according to paragraphs "a" and "g" of Part 2 of Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (murder of two persons committed by a group), no matter how many years have passed — 10, 20 or 40 — the criminal prosecution remains fully legitimate," the lawyer emphasizes.

Photo: Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation

In practice, the statute of limitations only hinders the possibility of imposing the maximum penalty, but does not nullify the very possibility of bringing to justice, the lawyer says.

— In Russia, they were repeatedly involved 25-30 years later in old gang cases, contract killings of the 90s, episodes of organized crime groups during the "transitional economy". Technically, the investigation starts from scratch, but legally everything is clean — the deadline has not "burned out".

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The logic of the law is simple: murder is a crime where the public danger does not decrease over time. Another thing is also important in this story: one of the alleged accomplices died — his case was terminated, but the second one falls under full responsibility, without taking into account the statute of limitations of the crime.

Photo: IZVESTIA/Andrey Erstrem

— The only real problem of the investigation is the evidence. In 26 years, witnesses have disappeared, participants have died, materials have been lost, and memory has faded," says Gavrishev. — But if a person actually testifies, explains the circumstances during the verification of testimony at the scene, the investigation confirms the details — these are weighty arguments for the court.

The inevitability of punishment is due to the activities of specialized units of the TFR for crimes of previous years.

"That is why news about the murders of the 90s periodically appears in Russia," the lawyer concluded.