In Yekaterinburg, a sentence was handed down again to a member of the "werewolves" gang from the Kirov District Internal Affairs Directorate (PHOTO)

      In Yekaterinburg, the sentence for former operative of the Kirov District Internal Affairs Department Vladimir Semenyuk has been tightened in a criminal case from 25 years ago regarding the murder of at least five people as part of a gang. The decision was made the day before by the Yekaterinburg Railway District Court, reports the unified press service of the Sverdlovsk region courts.

      Previously, the Sverdlovsk Regional Court, which received appeal complaints from both sides regarding the sentence handed down to Semenyuk by the Railway District Court in September 2025, returned his case to the prosecutor's office. The reason was a significant violation of criminal procedural law.

      The criminal case against him was investigated under paragraphs "a," "g," "z" of part 2 of article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (as amended by the law of July 9, 1999). The accused entered into a pre-trial cooperation agreement, provided detailed confessions, implicated his accomplices, and voluntarily compensated the victim for moral damages.

      The court took this into account, as well as the presence of a minor child and the remorse of the accused, as mitigating circumstances. The use of a weapon was recognized as an aggravating factor.

      On Wednesday, April 29, 2026, the Railway District Court re-sentenced Semenyuk to 9 years in a strict regime colony. However, based on part 5 of article 69 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (in conjunction with the sentence of September 21, 2005), the defendant ultimately received 15 years of imprisonment. The sentence has not yet entered into legal force.

      Let us remind you that 57-year-old Semenyuk, while being a police officer in 1999-2000, joined a gang of his colleagues and personally participated in brutal executions.

      According to the investigation, on June 8, 2000, the defendant personally shot a man in a thermal chamber. Semenyuk fired at least 8 shots to the head and chest of the victim. His accomplices shot two witnesses to the execution who were also present.

      In October 2000, Semenyuk received an order to kill a businessman for $1,000. To carry out the murder, he involved other gang members, and on October 16, they attacked the victim in masks near garbage containers.

      When the victim tried to escape, Semenyuk shot him in the chest and head, while an accomplice shot him three times with a gun. The man died on the spot.

      Another episode occurred in November 2000. Learning about the arrival of a businessman in Yekaterinburg with a large sum of money at that time (from 100,000 to 500,000 rubles), the gang organized a robbery against him.

      The entrepreneur refused to hand over the money, and Semenyuk shot the victim's companion in the head, and then shot the businessman four times in the neck and torso.

      Another accomplice of the attack struck the victims with a metal crowbar. Both victims died on the spot. The criminals stole up to 250,000 rubles. Vladimir Semenyuk was detained only in May 2024.