History Channel - The Russian Mafia

The Russian Mafia often transliterated as Mafiya are names designating a diverse group of organized crime syndicates originating in the former Soviet Union, Russia and the CIS. Since the 1991 fall of the Soviet Union, these groups have amassed considerable worldwide power and influence. They are active in virtually every part of Russian society. Russian criminals are internationally active in illegal oil trade, smuggling of weapons and nuclear material and money laundering.