MOSCOW, May 26 (RAPSI) – A court in the Siberian Zabaikalsky region has sentenced Igor Osintsev, leader of the criminal gang “Osintsevskiye” to 25 years in prison for committing 11 counts of serious crimes including murders, RIA Novosti reported on Thursday.

Osintsev has been charged with organization of a criminal group, gangsterism, murders, attempted murders, robbery, illegal acquisition, possession and carriage of weapons, car theft.

Osintsev along with another gang leader Igor Melnichuk have been earlier convicted and served prison terms from 1993 to 2001. However, the criminal group organized by Osintsev in 1991 survived and continued to commit offenses. After release Osintsev and Melnichuk kept leading the criminal group.

According to investigators, leaders and members of the gang killed 17 people, attempted the lives of two persons, stole several vehicles and committed assault related to robbery in the Zabaikalsky region, other Russian regions and Moscow between 2001 and 2007. Damage caused to victims is estimated at more than 7 million rubles ($106,200).