Armenian mafia boss sentenced to 22 years by Czech court

Mafia boss, Andranik S, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for masterminding the murder of an Armenian entrepreneur, Czech news portal Ceske noviny wrote February 28.

“The Prague Municipal Court today sentenced Andranik S, alleged Russian-language mafia boss or “vor v zakone,” in absentia to 22 years in jail for ordering the murder of an Armenian businessman,” Ceske noviny wrote.

Andranik S, who is reportedly currently in Armenia, was charged with orchestrating the murder of his fellow countryman in Prague, in 2007. The victim allegedly refused to pay off S’s gang and became a target for Andranik to “intimidate the Armenian community in Prague and gain influence on the Chechen community,” mafiatoday.com wrote.

The assassin hired to do the dead first stabbed the wrong man and then mistakenly shot an individual who drove the same car as his target.

The Czech authorities originally detained the suspect back in 2009, but the case against him was dismissed twice by the lower court.

Andralik S reportedly blamed health problems for not being able to appear in court. He has also repeatedly denied being the notorious ‘vor v zakone.’ Despite being ethnically Armenian – he was born in Gyumri, Armenia’s second largest city – S speaks Russian and his nickname ‘vor v zakone’ means ‘thief in law’ in Russian.