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Russian Rip-off: pickpockets and thugs
St. Petersburg— The beefiest of the five Mongolian thugs shoved his fist in front of Bob’s face, thrust forward his chin, and stared. Bob stared back and so did I. Two more brutes joined the first....
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Russian Rip-off: St. Petersburg pickpockets and thugs, part 2 of 5 (video)
St. Petersburg pickpockets St. Petersburg—we were surrounded by five hostile faces. Shaking inside, we stood firm until the men stalked off. Bob and I crossed the street to photograph the scene of the...
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Russian Rip-off: pickpockets and thugs, part 3 of 5
St. Petersburg—Pseudo-cops!” we thought: bandits who pretend to be police. We’re about to be robbed! At the same time, I thought: no, we’re about to be robbed by real cops of the corrupt variety. The...
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Russian Rip-off: pickpockets and thugs, part 4 of 5
St. Petersburg— “They think I robbed you,” he said. By then it must have been obvious to the cops that we were not Mohammed’s victims, or anyone else’s, either. But they’d created such a melee they...
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Russian Rip-off: pickpockets and thugs, part 5 of 5
Pickpockets in St. Petersburg Busy pedestrian corner on Nevsky Prospekt St. Petersburg, a few weeks later—We loaded ourselves with video equipment this time, and headed straight for the Metro corner....
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Bolshoi Bandits: more pickpockets in Russia
The Bolshoi Bandits and the Crosswalk Czar In which Bob Arno and his fancy accessory spy on the Russians. A man plays accordion on a Russian bridge St. Petersburg, Russia— I was ensconced in my...
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Promised pictures of thiefhunting in Russia
Bambi's hiding spot in St. Petersburg, beside and behind a freestanding slab of concrete. Were you waiting with bated breath for the promised pictures of the Russian ice cream seller and the stolen...
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How pickpockets use razor blades
A Close Shave, or, Honey, There’s a Hole in my Handbag Archil Zantaradze keeps a razor blade in his mouth the way someone else might store a tired wad of gum. Gently curved against his upper palate,...
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Russian gas scam #1
In 50s Russia, men used to go through the enormous apartment buildings, knocking on thousands of apartment doors. They claimed to be from the gas company and needed to check each apartment’s air...
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Russian gas scam #2
Around the same time as Russian Gas Scam #1, a resident in one of those gigantic apartment buildings—I’ll call him Boris—found a way to warm his home for free throughout the frigid winters. Each...
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Russian gas-guzzler scam #3
Unlike the Russian gas scams in my previous two posts, this one is recent, perpetrated by Russians in America. They’d steal a car—say, a Mercedes—take it to a shop, and completely gut it. Then they’d...
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Street crime in St. Petersburg, Russia
Who are the players here? Spot the mark. How many pickpockets do you see? Prowling and preying with impunity, the pickpocket pair cared little about hiding their business. Yet none of the mighty...
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Vodka and caviar in Russia
Vodka and caviar in Russia Russian oligarchs suck billions of dollars from the national economy but leave lavish scraps to tease big bucks from high-end tourists. As trips to the region are being...
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