Vladimir Antyufeyev | |
|---|---|
Владимир Антюфеев | |
| Chairman of the People's Council of the Donetsk People's Republic | |
| In office 28 July 2014 – 14 November 2014 | |
| Preceded by | Denis Pushilin |
| Succeeded by | Andrei Purgin |
| Minister of State Security of Transnistria | |
| In office September 1992 – 17 December 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Post established |
| Succeeded by | Vladislav Finagin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1951-02-19)19 February 1951 (age 74) |
| Nationality | Russia Transnistria Donetsk People's Republic |
| Spouse | Galina Antyufeyeva |
Vladimir Yuryevich Antyufeyev (Russian:Владимир Юрьевич Антюфеев; born 19 February 1951), also known under the assumed nameVadim Shevtsov orVladimir Shevtsov is a politician and formerOMON officer who was one of the organizers in attempt to overthrow theLatvian government in 1991.
As "Vadim Shevtsov", he was later the head of theMinistry of State Security of Moldova's pro-Moscow separatist state ofTransnistria 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 Latvia 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, by becoming theChairman of the People's Council of the Donetsk People's Republic
Antyufeyev was born inNovosibirsk,Russian SFSR, Soviet Union.[1] In 1974, he graduated from a police academy inMinsk,Byelorussian SSR.[1]
He is a former SovietOMON special police major[2] andRiga 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 LatvianMVD where some 80% of the Latvian police force made a decision not to recognize thePopular Front of Latvia government and follow theConstitution of the Soviet Union instead. These police forces would later be involved in theKGB-led[citation needed]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 byViktor Alksnis, on whose recommendation he traveled toTiraspol to take part in theTransnistrian 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 theMinistry of State Security, which he headed.[5] Shevtsov's real identity was revealed byAleksandr Lebed in 1997.
In 2003 Antyufeyev defended a doctoral thesis on "Russia's Geostrategy in the Southwest" at theRussian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration.[8]
In 2004, theprosecutor of Moldova indicted Antyufeyev for crimes against the Moldovan state and freeing an officer accused of several assassinations.[4] That same year, Antyufeyev was declaredpersona non grata by theEuropean Union.[3]
He marriedGalina Antyufeyeva, a deputy in theTransnistrian Supreme Soviet and head of the committee on legislation. Antyufeyev has stated: "We pose a real problem toMoldova. My life's purpose is to save this land [Transnistria] for Russia."[5] In early 2012, he was dismissed by the incumbent presidentYevgeny 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 inSouth Ossetia,Abkhazia, andCrimea.[6][9] In July 2014, he appeared ineastern Ukraine as the "deputy prime minister" of theDonetsk People's Republic (DPR).[10] The DPR headAlexander Borodai met him inMoscow and put him in charge of the rebel security forces (taking over fromAlexander Khodakovsky), internal affairs, and courts of justice.[3] The European Union named Antyufeyev on its list ofsanctioned individuals.[1] In a mid-August 2014 interview withNovaya Gazeta Antyufeyev claimed "Nobody's to blame that our banks, shops, theairport [inDonetsk] are closed — except for the Ukrainianfascists and themasons of the U.S. and Europe".[8]