Federal prosecutors are charging more than two dozen people believed to be Russian mobsters and their associates of racketeering and other illegal activity.
One of the alleged leaders of a Soviet mafia syndicate was arrested in Las Vegas Wednesday morning and appeared in federal court for a brief hearing later in the day. Authorities have described Razhden Shulaya as a leader of an elite order of Soviet criminals.
The indictment provides an image of a powerful crime boss who ran The Shulaya Enterprises. The group’s alleged crimes include illegal gambling, cigarette trafficking, bribery, extortion and credit card fraud, as well as a more unusual charge of stealing a cargo shipment with 10,000 pounds of chocolate.
A magistrate judge in Las Vegas ordered his transfer to New York, where the case is being prosecuted.
