Moldovan police hold two ex-gang bosses

The mobster Malhaz Djaparidze has been held by the Moldovan law enforcement bodies shortly after crossing the Moldo-Ukrainian border. Malhaz, tried five times for robbery, had broken loose a few days after being captured, Info-Prim Neo reports. Ghenadie Cosovan, department head at the Interior Ministry, told a news conference on Wednesday that Malhaz Djaparidze will shortly appear before a judge who is to decide on his pre-trial detention. Malhaz will face three charges: of drug possession, of illegal border crossing, and use of a forged passport. The criminal gang “Malhaz” was disbanded several years ago, but some of its members are still at large and remain dangerous. The gang was suspected of committing a multitude of offences in Moldova, including robberies, thefts, armed assaults, illegal possession of weapons and drug-trafficking. At the same conference, Cosovan revealed that the police held another gangster, the boss of the former criminal gang “Ruslan”, the 54-year-old Ruslan Urusbiev, previously convicted of serious offences. This time, the police arrested him on suspicions of raping and robbing a teenage girl.