There are many examples in history when bandits came to power. And also "made their way" to the generals and order bearers. A striking example of such people is Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel. A man who was a bandit, a swindler and one of the founders of the Gulag.
Short biography
Where Naftaly Aronovich was born is not exactly known. There are several versions of early life:
- Born in 1883 in Constantinople. After graduating from the institute, Frenkel took up the timber trade. According to some reports, he opened a company selling timber. He got very rich on this. He even had his own newspaper.
- Birthplace - Odessa. The father was an officer. In 1898 he began working for a construction company. From 1902 to 1904 he studied in Germany as a builder. After training, he gets into a criminal gang, participates in raids during the Civil War. After some time, the gang broke up, because of which Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel organized his own criminal gang. Engaged in extortion, blackmail, robbery and smuggling.
Who was thisman
One of the outstanding builders of communism. He developed a system in which prisoners built roads, reservoirs, dams, hydroelectric stations. Under the leadership of N. Frenkel, the famous Belomor Canal was built. It can be said that Naftaly Frenkel created the GULAG. He combined human qualities with excellent intuition and had a special pragmatic attitude towards human life.
Working in a construction company
At the age of 15, he starts working in the Kherson construction office. Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel makes a good impression on the leadership. Surprises with its discipline and diligence. So, according to some sources, the biography of Naftaly Frenkel originates. However, he had a strange feature: he liked to create conflicts between workers and watch them. Gradually acquires the skills of subjugating people.
Naftalia's new work
In 1900 he became a foreman in Nikolaev. The owners of the company loved him very much, for many it is a mystery for what qualities. After that, Naftaliy Frenkel was sent to study at a construction college in Germany. After training, he returns to his homeland and continues to work in the company.
After some time, Naftaly Frenkel offers his owners a profitable commercial move: stop paying for the rent of warehouse space, instead build their own warehouses. However, he was convicted of forging documents and fired from his job.
Moving to Odessa
In 1918 he began to studyacceptance of sea cargo. Very often the goods are of poor quality. However, he does not want to lose a lot of money and puts low-quality goods up for sale. Again, in the biography of Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel, everything is embellished. He has been lucky in sales and earns decent money.
Meet the bandits
Frenkel always thought ahead, especially when it came to business. In Odessa, he meets the famous criminal Yaponchik and begins to cooperate with him to expand his business. However, Frenkel did not manage to outwit the bandit and he had to allocate a share in his business. He was not at all worried about being part of an illegal group. Morality did not bother Naphtalia at all. He was only interested in power and what money brings. Also, Frenkel did not accept the "raider code", which forbade attacks on doctors, artists and lawyers. He did not support the way money was deducted for low-income families.
In Odessa, a lot of people in power are being replaced, which makes it difficult to engage in commercial activities. In 1917, he begins to lose his money and submits to the power of bandits.
In 1919, the waves of round-ups of the Bolsheviks began. To save his people, he, together with Yaponchik, forms a detachment of the Red Army. After that, under the command of M. Vinnitsky, he goes to the front. Fight against the Petliurites. As soon as the regiment was disbanded, Naftaliy immediately returned to his homeland to do business.
Development of Frenkel's gangster world
In 1921 he gains wide recognition fromcriminals, their own criminal group appears. The gang is engaged in extortion, blackmail, kidnapping, fraud. This brings in a lot of profit. The NEP is being introduced, which Naftaly immediately took advantage of. He created smuggling on a large scale under the guise of a private firm. His ships sail across the Black Sea, delivering various goods to Romania, Turkey and Russia. The list of goods sold is huge:
- Currency is transported from almost all countries of the world.
- Practically all kinds of clothes.
- Jewelry.
- All kinds of accessories and decorations.
This man created his own state. It has certain laws, people and property. Such a person as Frenkel Naftaly Aronovich does not care about children at all. He sells smuggling through trusted people in various shops, restaurants and hotels. Criminals in all major Russian cities help distribute illegal goods. At the direction of Frenkel, goods are "stamped" under well-known brands of European stores. They bought almost everything: the courts, the criminal investigation department, border guards, the GPU. In Moscow, individual officials were even bribed to cover up illegal business.
Frenkel's arrest
There were a lot of complaints to Dzerzhinsky about the state of affairs in Odessa. In this city, it was already difficult for people to figure out who is who. The entire population could no longer distinguish the raiders from ordinary citizens.
In order to correct the deplorable situation, a member of the board of the OGPU Deribas was sent to Odessa. Odessans like no one else knew thissurname. After all, one person from this family participated in the construction of the city.
The person sent on the mission looked ridiculous. He was short, with large ears and flaky skin. Deribas simply hated all of humanity and loved to hurt people.
Upon arrival in the city, thanks to his great authority, he learns almost everything about Frenkel's smuggling. However, Naftali himself knew everything about Deribas. A confrontation began between them. The smuggler had people close to Deribas. Among them was Yagoda, a man who is actively building a career and helping Frenkel in every possible way.
One of the writers of that time noted that the head of the NKVD did not influence the course of events. He was addicted to drugs and debauchery, was just a pawn. At a time when there was a fierce struggle for power in the ranks of the Communist Party, Frenkel used this and competently speculated on connections in the NKVD.
With Naftali there was a real game without rules. Deribas offered to pay him off, thereby Frenkel fell for the trick. He thought that his opponent wanted to make a lot of money and went to negotiations. During the whole process, Deribas was cunning and sent news to Dzerzhinsky. He left the Odessa NKVD authorities, and received further instructions directly from Moscow.
On the night of 1924, a train carrying Moscow Chekists arrives in Odessa. Immediately after arrival, all participants in the smuggling scheme are detained along with Frenkel. A few days later, on the same train with serious guards, the bandits leave for Moscow.
Years of imprisonment
The trial began soon, already on January 14, 1924, Naftaliy and his people were sentenced to death. However, he is lucky again: right before his death, they report that the execution has been replaced by 10 years in prison. All Frenkel's comrades were killed, only he remained alive. This confirms the fact that his "bribery empire" worked.
Naftalia is sent to serve his sentence in Solovki. There he gives a bribe and starts working as a contractor. Along the way, he studies life in the Solovetsky penal servitude. The man understands that the convicts are wasting their strength aimlessly. Frenkel begins to ponder grandiose plans for the distribution of work of prisoners.
Once a typhoid louse was brought to Solovki. This was a real disaster for the island. There were too many sick people, in some cases people even died. However, this disease did not hurt Frenkel, but, on the contrary, helped him to advance. In order to get rid of the misfortune, it was necessary to build baths. The engineers said that the construction could take half a month. At this moment, Naftaly Aronovich understands that this is his chance. He takes all the initiative and claims that he can cope with the construction in a day. Only he set his conditions:
- We need 50 people to build.
- Frenkel chooses people himself.
- Alcohol and food delivered at the appointed time.
After he was given everything he asked for. Frenkel chose 30 of the strongest young people. He does it without mistakes, because he has a lot of experience. Naphtaliy also asked 20 old men anddisabled.
Brought all the people to the construction site. It was very cold for everyone, it was very cold outside. Frenkel ordered to divide into 2 columns: young people in one direction, old people in the other. Then he said that if a bathhouse was not built within 24 hours, then everyone would be shot, including the old people and Frenkel himself.
It was a kind of psychological trick that Naftali had learned a long time ago. The plan worked, all the workers worked hard. Even the old people helped. Frenkel did his job well. All instructions were clear, people willingly followed them. The bath was built from all directions. After 21 hours of work, the task was completed. 3 hours ahead of schedule. For such a service, Aronovich was called to the authorities, after which Frenkel began his career in the Solovetsky penal servitude.
Moving forward
After fruitful work in 1926, the head of the Solovetsky camps reduced the term of imprisonment for Naftali by half. A year later, he was released ahead of schedule and appointed head of the production department at Solovetsky penal servitude.
Frenkel was quite firmly established in the Office. Considering several large-scale projects. Proposes to create a new type of hard labor. Already in 1929 he reorganized the entire Administration. He believed that it was impossible to re-educate a person. Therefore, I did not see the point in political and educational work. He argued that the use of prison labor is much more useful and better. However, the leadership in Moscow was very surprised by this statement.
Frenkel did not like this arrangement of affairs. Heknew how to eliminate officials in Moscow. However, he needed to finish all the affairs in Solovki. Printing presses worked almost around the clock, they produced many plans, diagrams, reports and various proposals. Mail was sent at high speed. Frenkel receives approval from Moscow to conduct the experiment. They called him "Housekeeping". Thanks to Naftali, the prisoners cut down forests, built cities, built railways.
This man successfully proves that camps can be profitable and bring huge amounts of money. Frenkel destroyed not only political and educational work, but almost the entire culture on the island. First the local magazine disappeared, then the newspaper. After that, the theater was destroyed, and all its employees were sent to the Northern Urals. There were almost never enough prisoners, and years earlier the government didn't know what to do with them. As soon as things went up, Frenkel de alt with all the enemies in Moscow.
Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel: family
Like most of his colleagues, having settled in Moscow, he found himself a soul mate. It was a simple secretary from the Lubyanka. And her name was Anna Sotskova. After some time, the couple got married. This is how Naftaly Frenkel got a wife and children. Sometimes it seems that he is an ordinary person, like everyone around. The wife was 16 years younger. Frenkel calculated everything correctly in the union. Anna had no flaws, and she was with him all her life. Frenkel Naftaly Aronovich still got children. In 1931 they had a son, named Boris.
Naftalia's great successes
The most ambitious construction tasks are being assigned to this person. And he never fails. In 1931 he became the chief superintendent of Belomorstroy. Some time later he was awarded the Order of Lenin. In 1933, Frenkel was appointed head of the Gulag Directorate, for which he received high payments from the government.
Most of the money he spends on bribes and bribery. Naftaly works very brazenly, because nothing threatens him. Frenkel is the head of the Gulag department. Only in 1937 does a misfire occur: he is again threatened with the death pen alty. However, once again he manages to avoid punishment. He not only becomes free, but also receives another Order of Lenin. And in 1943 he was awarded again.
How Frenkel acted
The very appearance of this man inspired fear in many. He had a mustache, like Hitler, a cane, always shiny high-heeled boots, photos of Naftaly Frenkel of those years demonstrate this. There was nothing human about him. He didn't read books, didn't drink, didn't dance. In character, he combined a skeptic and a satirist. He loved power very much. At times, Naftali imitated Stalin. Unlike his colleagues, he did not scold the prisoners, did not beat anyone. Only his gaze was enough, which was able to put any person in a stupor. Prisoners for work were brought from all over the country. Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel met almost every new shipment. Sometimes the prisoners were accompanied by an orchestra, and then they were kneeled in the snow and counted.
He treated the workers extremely harshly. Over time, he generally lost morality. prisonerwho worked, brought rations and clothes. All this fell into the snow and only the strongest got it, while the rest died of cold and hunger. Frenkel believed that he needed only strong workers.
Last years of life
Leaves socialist construction thanks to his intuition. According to some reports, purges are coming in the Ministry. In 1947 he resigned. A year later, all of Frenkel's followers were arrested. He just watched from the sidelines. He dies a peaceful death in 1960. Many are interested in where Naftaly Aronovich Frenkel is buried. There is no exact version of this. According to some reports, Naftaly Frenkel died in Moscow, his grave is located at the Vvedensky cemetery. This is a man who made a significant contribution to the sad history of the construction of communism.
