Man Sentenced to 13 Years in a High-Security Prison for ‘Overseeing’ the Sverdlovsk Region

Moscow. November 20. INTERFAX.RU – The Sverdlovsk Regional Court found Marcel Gasanov guilty of occupying a high position in a criminal hierarchy and sentenced him to 13 years in a high-security prison with an additional year of freedom restriction, the press service of the Prosecutor’s Office of the Sverdlovsk Region reports.
The prosecutor presented evidence in court that in September 2024, ‘thieves in law’ appointed Gasanov as the one ‘overseeing’ the Sverdlovsk region. In addition to the main sentence, he was also fined 1 million rubles, according to the statement.
The supervisory authority noted that convicted Gasanov, having experience in criminal activities and influence in the Sverdlovsk region, systematically organized, distributed, and controlled the criminal cash, coordinating its timely replenishment, personally and through monetary funds.
The Prosecutor’s Office press service also specified that Gasanov propagated criminal traditions in the region, monitored their compliance, applied sanctions to violators, and resolved conflicts in the criminal environment.
In February of this year, the Leninsky District Court of Yekaterinburg ordered him to be detained. Moreover, it is reported that in March of this year, while in custody at the FSIN institution, Gasanov insulted a penitentiary staff member.
The prosecutor asked the court to sentence him to 15 years in prison and a fine of 1 million rubles, with an additional one and a half years of freedom restriction. The court found Gasanov guilty of occupying a high position in a criminal hierarchy, public insult to a government representative, and threat of violence against a detainee.
Earlier, the head of the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Sverdlovsk region, Valery Gorelykh, informed journalists that Gasanov, known in certain circles as ‘Marseille from Makhachkala’ or ‘Mars,’ had been repeatedly prosecuted for crimes such as robbery and illegal possession of weapons.
In April 2010, the Derbent District Court of Dagestan sentenced Gasanov to seven years in prison, and in December 2019, he was conditionally sentenced to one year and four months by the Verkh-Isetsky District Court of Yekaterinburg. After his release, he left for Dagestan but later returned to Yekaterinburg.