Vladimir Antyufeyev

Vladimir Yurievich Antyufeyev (Russian: Владимир Юрьевич Антюфéев), also known under the assumed name Vadim Shevtsov or Vladimir Shevtsov (born 19 February 1951) is a former Soviet OMON police officer who was one of organizers of the attempt to overthrow the Latvian government in 1991. As "Vadim Shevtsov", he was later the head of the Ministry of State Security of Moldova's pro-Moscow separatist state of Transnistria between 1992 and 2012. He is a Russian and Transnistrian citizen and was for many years wanted by the law enforcement agencies of Latvia and Moldova. He is no longer wanted by the Latvians however due to their statute of limitations on the type of crime he was alleged to have committed. In July 2014, Antyufeyev became one of leaders of Ukraine's pro-Russia secessionist rebels.

Vladimir Antyufeyev
(Vadim Shevtsov)
Chairman of the People's Council of the Donetsk People's Republic
In office
July 28, 2014 – November 14, 2014
Preceded byDenis Pushilin
Succeeded byAndrei Purgin
Minister of State Security of Transnistria
In office
September 1992 – 17 December 2012
Preceded byPost established
Succeeded byVladislav Finagin
Personal details
Born
Владимир Антюфéев

(1951-02-19) 19 February 1951
Novosibirsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
NationalityRussian
Transnistrian
Spouse(s)Galina Antyufeyeva

Life and career

Antyufeyev was born in Novosibirsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union.[1] In 1974, he graduated from a police academy in Minsk, Byelorussian SSR.[1]

He is a former Soviet OMON special police major[2] and Riga police deputy chief of criminal investigation. He served as Riga OMON commander in 1990–1991.[3] In August 1990, Antyufeyev was one of the organizers of a meeting of the Latvian MVD where some 80% of the Latvian police force made a decision not to recognize the Popular Front of Latvia government and follow the Constitution of the Soviet Union instead. These police forces would later be involved in the KGB-led failed pro-unity coup attempt in January 1991. For these actions the Latvian government accused Antyufeyev of "crimes against the state" in August 1991.[4][5] He says he fled to Moscow two hours before he was to be arrested.[6]

In Russia, Antyufeyev was assisted by Viktor Alksnis, on whose recommendation he traveled to Tiraspol to take part in the Transnistrian independence movement in September 1991. Adopting a new name, "Vadim Shevtsov,"[7] Antyufeyev played a key role in forming the internal affairs and security organizations of the Transnistrian government, especially the Ministry of State Security, which he headed.[5] Shevtsov's real identity was revealed by Aleksandr Lebed in 1997.

In 2003 Antyufeyev defended a doctoral thesis on "Russia's Geostrategy in the Southwest" at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.[8]

In 2004, the prosecutor of Moldova indicted Antyufeyev for crimes against the Moldovan state and freeing an officer accused of several assassinations.[4] That same year, Vladimir Antyufeyev was declared persona non grata by the European Union.[3]

He married Galina Antyufeyeva, a deputy in the Transnistrian Supreme Soviet and head of the committee on legislation. Antyufeyev has stated: "We pose a real problem to Moldova. My life's purpose is to save this land [Transnistria] for Russia."[5] In early 2012, he was dismissed by the incumbent president Yevgeny Shevchuk and a criminal investigation was launched against him, alleging abuse of power, misappropriation of public funds and destruction of documents.[1][9]

Antyufeyev based himself in Moscow in 2012.[6] He said he worked on security in South Ossetia, Abkhazia, and Crimea.[6][9] In July 2014, he appeared in eastern Ukraine as the "deputy prime minister" of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR).[10] The DPR head Alexander Borodai met him in Moscow and put him in charge of the rebel security forces (taking over from Alexander Khodakovsky), internal affairs, and courts of justice.[3] The European Union named Antyufeyev in its list of sanctioned individuals.[1] In a mid-August 2014 interview with Novaya Gazeta Antyufeyev claimed "Nobody's to blame that our banks, shops, the airport [in Donetsk] are closed — except for the Ukrainian fascists and the masons of the U.S. and Europe".[8]

References
  1. "Russian ex-police chief Antyufeyev leads Donetsk rebels". BBC News. July 31, 2014.
  2. Stuttaford, Andrew (2014-07-17). "The 'Donetsk People's Republic' | National Review Online". Nationalreview.com. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  3. Socor, Vladimir. "Russian Secessionists Ready for 'State-Building' In Ukraine's Donetsk City | The Jamestown Foundation". Jamestown.org. Retrieved 2014-07-28.
  4. "Ministrul securităţii din Transnistria urmărit penal" [Ministry of Security in Transnistria]. BBC News (in Romanian). 27 September 2004.
  5. Геннадий Кодряну. ДНЕСТРОВСКИЙ РАЗЛОМ. ГЛАВА ЧЕТВЕРТАЯ: ЧТО ДАЛЬШЕ? (in Russian). Archived from the original on December 25, 2008. Retrieved April 2, 2010.
  6. McLaughlin, Daniel (July 30, 2014). "Shadowy veteran of pro-Russian rebellions in Ukraine". The Irish Times.
  7. Baczynska, Gabriela; Vasovic, Aleksandar (July 27, 2014). "Pushing locals aside, Russians take top rebel posts in east Ukraine". Reuters.
  8. "Rebel Leader Blames Ukrainian War on Masons - News". The Moscow Times. Retrieved 9 February 2015.
  9. Chalupa, Irena (July 17, 2014). "Needing Better Control in Ukraine War, Moscow Sends in an Old KGB Hand". Atlantic Council.
  10. Applebaum, Anne (July 18, 2014). "The End of the Russian Fairy Tale". Slate.
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