A trial is underway in Yekaterinburg for Konstantin Kotik, a former police officer accused of participating in a gang that committed multiple murders in the late 1990s. Kotik and other members of the gang were apprehended last spring.

The group is accused of killing 11 people between 1999 and 2000. These crimes were reportedly committed for financial gain, during robberies, and to cover up other offenses.

In October 1999, gang members allegedly took two men to a forest, murdered them, and buried their bodies. In 2000, Kotik, along with Vladislav Sobol and Vladimir Semenyuk, allegedly shot and killed three people in a wasteland near Avtomagistralnaya Street. The gang also confessed to the murder of Viktor Ivanov, a lawyer for the company “Russian Gems,” in the same year.

Authorities further allege that the gang murdered a businessman and his girlfriend in 2000, shooting them on Pekhotintsev Street. Kotik’s testimony regarding this particular murder was verified at the scene.

The gang, armed with a crowbar and firearms, reportedly stole 250,000 rubles from the victims on Pekhotintsev Street, which was later divided among the members.

In total, five individuals were part of the gang. The cases of the other participants have been separated into individual proceedings. Vladislav Sobol was previously convicted of drug trafficking in 2006 and sentenced to 15 years, but was later released. Semenyuk was convicted in 2004 and received an eight-year sentence.