![]() However, an inmate who had previously served on the police force or worked in the service industry (cab driver, waiter, etc.) can’t become a blatnoy. Oftentimes, this caste is made up of regular professional criminals. But, in the zones, where authority belongs to the prison administration, the influence of the Blaniyeh is often curtailed, due to the law against cooperation with, well - the actual law. This group controls the law inside the zona, where life is lived according to prison law. It sits right below the top caste in the prison hierarchy. However, it is a slightly different caste. Блатные (“Blatniyeh” - a lower caste of connected thieves)Īfter thieves in law come the Blatniyeh - which also loosely translates as “thieves”, slightly complicating the matter. To learn more about thieves in law and what they do once free, click here. When thrown in the zona - or “the zone”, which is slang for a maximum security penal colony - the thieves oversee the obschak - the common criminal cash reserve, as well as set up their own law and solve any issues and conflicts, according to a set of ponyatiya - or “concepts”, a slang term that used to penetrate deep into the Russian vernacular in the post-Soviet days, even outside the criminal world. Its main principles are loyalty to the thieving idea and the impossibility of any cooperation with law enforcement in any capacity whatsoever, including the prison administration. Zakonniki observe and revere a strict code of conduct - the so-called “thief’s law”. This group of respected bigshots, who control the majority of the criminal world, both in prison and outside, is united by certain common themes.įor instance, the person who would like to get promoted to a “thief in law” must first command unshakeable respect among the thieving ilk, as well as have numerous convictions under their belt and absolutely abhor any cooperation with any state law enforcement structures. Should other inmates associate with them, their own status would be "lowered.These so-called vory v zakone - or zakonniki (‘Thieves in Law’) are the kings of the criminal underworld. These signs served to enforce the power of the thieves, acting as a warning to the rest of the prison population. Both of these symbols were forcibly applied, depriving the bearer of all status, leading to violence. Stool pigeons belonged to the "chummy" suit, represented by a diamond, while the symbol of hearts transformed the bearer into a "woman" in the zone. In contrast, the red suits were the least noble. The main symbols of a legitimate thief were suits of clubs or spades. The most noble of the cards were the king of clubs and spades. Groups of inmates belonged to different masti ("suits"), and these card symbols were represented in their respective tattoos. So with that dense symbolic structure already in place, what do cards add to it? In the world of thieves, a man with no tattoos had no social status whatsoever. He was consequently beaten, raped, or killed. The question asked by legitimate thieves of any new arrival was: "Do you stand by your tattoos?" If the tattoos did not reflect his rank, the prisoner was forced to remove them with a knife, sandpaper, a shard of glass, or a lump of brick.
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