Kazakhstan Extradites Member of Infamous Belarusian Crime Syndicate

One of the last remaining members of the notorious Belarusian organized crime group “Morozov’s Gang” has been extradited from Kazakhstan to Belarus, Orda.kz reports.

The Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs confirmed the arrest of 50-year-old Viktor Retsky, who was allegedly a contract killer for the gang. Retsky had been wanted for his involvement in homicides, attempted homicides, and other serious crimes that plagued Belarus for over a decade. 

He was placed on an interstate wanted list in January 2005 and later listed internationally via Interpol.

Retsky was detained in August 2023 in the city of Qostanay during a joint operation by law enforcement agencies from Kazakhstan and Belarus. For 19 years, he had been evading capture by living under forged identities in Russia and Kazakhstan.

One of his aliases included the name Alexander Olegovich Bely, which is coincidentally the name of the main character from the 1990s Russian crime series "Brigada."

He was recently extradited from Astana to Minsk.

"Morozov’s Gang" was among the most violent criminal groups operating in Gomel and the surrounding region from the late 1980s until 2004. Its members were implicated in numerous crimes, including murder, robbery, extortion, and intimidation.

While the gang was dismantled in the 2000s, several members fled abroad to avoid prosecution.

Original Author: Ruslan Loginov