Work

Gulags, crime, and elite violence: Origins and consequences of the Russian mafia

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This paper studies the origins and consequences of the Russian mafia ( vory-v-zakone ). Using a unique web scraped dataset containing detailed biographies of more than 5,000 mafia leaders, I first show that the Russian mafia originated in the Soviet Gulag , and could be found near the camps’ initial locations throughout the 1990s Russia. Then, using an instrumental variable approach that exploits the proximity of the Russian mafia to the camps, I show that Russian communities with mafia presence in the 1990s experienced a dramatic rise in crime driven by elite violence which erupted shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. The surge in violence was indiscriminate with respect to the victim type. Furthermore, the effect of mafia presence on elite violence was smaller in places where either all or none of the vory were ethnic Russians, suggesting some degree of ethnic conflict within the criminal organization itself.

Source: Journal of Public Economics

DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2025.105361

Author: Jakub Lonsky

Institution: University of Edinburgh

Language: English

Topic: Crime, Illicit Activities, and Governance

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,510