A Russian ‘mafia boss’ was gunned down during a party he threw to celebrate his release from prison. A video catches how Alexander Zhestokov, 39, was approached by an assassin who opened fire from close range. The suspected Siberian mobster collapsed on the floor and died on the spot.

Zhestokov – rumoured to be a leader of the feared Zapsibovskie gang – had been hosting a party in Dzambul bar in the industrial city of Novokuznetsk. He is seen talking to associates when the gunman approaches dressed in black with a hood and dark glasses, carrying a firearm with a big silencer. A CCTV video shows the moment bullets are sprayed into the alleged mafia man. Zhestokov falls onto the floor and appears to cover his face before expiring.

His associates appear shocked at first but within seconds of the contract killing they flee the restaurant in the Kemerovo region of Siberia, a major coal mining area. Police have opened a murder probe. The region’s top policeman Major-General Igor Ivanov has taken personal control of the investigation, say reports. In early July, Zhestokov had been released from jail after serving a sentence for fraud and blackmail.

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