The trail has not gone cold: the murderer of the lyceum director was sentenced to 17 years

The court has put an end to the murder case of the director of Gagarin Lyceum No. 10 in Lyubertsy, Honored Teacher of Russia Vadim Menis. According to the investigation, the teacher refused to sell a large stake in the Lyubertsy Agricultural Machinery Plant to the criminal authority of the Taganskaya organized crime group, after which he was killed on the doorstep of the lyceum. The perpetrator received 17 years of strict regime, his accomplices — from nine to 11 years. How, 24 years later, the crime was solved and why it is especially difficult to investigate old cases — in the Izvestia article.

A quick solution

The Lyubertsy City Court in one day considered a criminal case on the murder of the 62-year-old director of Lyceum No. 10 named after Yuri Gagarin (now Lyubertsy Technical College. — Ed.) by Vadim Menis. Taking into account the position of the Moscow Region prosecutor's office, the killer Mikhail Kolosov received 17 years of strict regime; Andrei Gusev, who brought him to the lyceum and pointed out the teacher, received nine years, and the instigator Alexei Lazutin received 11 years. This was reported by the press service of the department.

Vadim Menis was shot dead in 2002 on the doorstep of the lyceum. On the morning of October 10, he arrived at work, and the perpetrator of the murder, Kolosov, armed with a silenced pistol, and Gusev, who was supposed to point out the teacher, were already waiting for him near the educational institution. After committing the crime, the accomplices fled to a village in Ramenskoye district.

According to the case file, the instigator turned out to be Alexei Lazutin, who was a member of the Lyubertsy wing of the Taganskaya criminal group. According to the investigation, Vadim Menis refused to sell shares of the plant to the authority for a song, and he harbored a grudge. As Izvestia previously reported, it was about a large package of securities of the Ukhtomsky Agricultural Machinery plant located in Lyubertsy.

Lazutin turned to another member of the Taganskaya brigade, Vladimir Kazakov, and, threatening to kill him, demanded that the lyceum's director be dealt with. Under pressure from an acquaintance, Kazakov agreed and hired his driver Andrey Gusev, as well as Mikhail Kolosov, a native of Donetsk region, to carry out the crime.

In addition to Menis, as the investigation found out, in December 2002, Kolosov shot two more people. A resident of Lyuberets found out about Kazakov's involvement in the murder of the lyceum's director and began blackmailing him, demanding a house in Ramenskoye district for his silence. Unwilling to part with his possessions, Kazakov invited the man to his place and instructed Kolosov to deal with him. He obeyed the order, at the same time killing the guest's companion.

The court found Mikhail Kolosov guilty of murder for hire, as well as the attempted murders of two people — a driver and a plumber at the lyceum, who tried to detain the criminal. Andrei Gusev is accused of complicity, Alexei Lazutin is accused of incitement. The criminal case against Kazakov was terminated due to his death: the criminal authority died in an accident five months after the murder of Vadim Menis.

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What helps to solve old cases

Experts attribute the speed of the case review to the fact that the defendants admitted their guilt.

— The crime occurred 23 years ago. Eyewitnesses and witnesses have forgotten a lot, and some evidence may have been lost. The confessions allowed the court to understand the circumstances of the case in more detail and determine the role of each participant. When sentencing, the behavior of the defendants during the trial and their attitude to the incident are also taken into account. First of all, it should contribute to the correction of convicts," said lawyer and adviser to the ICA "Assembly" Yuri Piyagin.

Sergey Kolosovsky, head of the Logard law group, believes that the defendants actively cooperated with the investigation. According to him, they all turned themselves in.

— In such cases, the punishment may not exceed two thirds of the maximum term. Therefore, if a person confessed or actively assisted in solving a crime, the time limit for one episode could not be more than 13 years and 4 months. This concerns Gusev and Lazutin's accomplices. For a performer convicted of two counts, the maximum term is 19 years and 11 months.

The investigation of old cases requires particularly careful work with preserved materials and testimony. Sergey Kolosovsky explains why it can be difficult to establish the circumstances of a crime years later.:

— After such a long time, people forget the details that allow them to reliably reconstruct the picture of the crime and make sure that the person really has reliable information. Accordingly, it is very difficult to compare statements that differ in detail and determine who is telling the truth. Moreover, over time, common points are forgotten — for example, the burial place of a corpse. And without this, one cannot be 100% sure not only that the murder has been solved, but also that it took place at all," the expert adds.

Nevertheless, time does not always play against the investigation. Years later, new evidence or confessions of participants in the events may appear, which help to restore the picture of what happened and find those who have remained out of sight of law enforcement officers for a long time.