MOSCOW. - Orenburg Regional Court passed the sentence of bandits from a group of the underworld leader Rashid Khachatryan on August 5. Khachatryan was extradited to Russia from Nagorno-Karabakh Republic in 2007.

The court sentenced the leader of the criminal association Rashid Khachatryan to 14 years’ imprisonment. Kulcharov, next in the hierarchy, got 20 years. Averkiev and Matvev got 10, Nepeskuliev – 12 years.  Kopchenov and Chernikyan got 8 years in jail, reports Orenburg Broadcasting Company.

The lawyers, however, expected a different verdict for Khachatryan - justificative.

"He was convicted for a big name. The crime was not proved," said Vitaly Kobzeva, Khachatryan’s attorney.

However, a conviction does not mean that Rashid will cease to control the underworld.

"It did not deprive him of the status of the underworld leader. He remains such to this day," said Deputy Head of the Orenburg inquiry committee Vitaly Avdeev.

Rashid Khachatryan became Russian underworld leader in the late 1990s. In 11 years, he created his own criminal gang and tried to establish a regional criminal power rule.

“Even those who were not part of this gang but committed crimes on his territory, had to pay him money," said prosecutor Vladimir Komyn.