Cops on the Take

摘要

Like so many "businessmen" in post-communist Russia, Yevgeny Roitman had things going his way—for a while. At 38, police say, he had become the de facto head of organized crime in the provincial center of Tver, two hours northwest of Moscow. He allegedly ran the local rackets, extorted money from legitimate businessmen—and eliminated those who wouldn't cooperate. Roitman lived in a splashy new apartment, drove an Audi sports sedan and had given his wife a gaudy gift: a brand-new red Dodge. She cruised the dreary streets of Tver as if she owned the place. And why not? Her husband seemed to have all the bases covered. Everyone in town feared him, his alleged mob ties were lucrative and he had a stable, full-time job: Roitman headed the organized-crime-fighting team of the Tver Police Department.