At the beginning of February 1997 Italian police were informed that Alexander Solonnik was found dead in Athens. On his body forged documents and notes showed important connections with Italy. On the morning of March 25th after days and days of investigations and ambushes the Italian S.C.O. policemen raided a flat in Via Gregorio VII, a residential area close to St. Peter Church in Rome.
Here was found a duffel bag containing two Kalashnikof, three Scorpion machine guns, seven guns (some of them provided with silencer and some laser guided), 2500 bullets, two - way radios, daggers, wigs, forged documents. All this belongs to the man found dead in Greece, whose name is Alexander Solonnik: he was born in 1960 at Kurgan in Russia.
Solonik remains a legend for the Russian public and is known as a 'superkiller', which is the name for the best contract killers in Russia.
Solonik had worked for the army and had training with the militia he was entitled to seperate lock up away from the normal population, but for some reason (probably Solonik's month long run) he was placed among normal prison population. When it became known to the other inmates that Solonik had been a soldier and had done work for the militia he was marked for death. Since there are no real rules in the Gulag Solonik was on his own, and he managed. After fights where Solonik sometimes took on as many as twelve hardened inmates a time Solonik came out the winner. After this the other inmates left him alone, he had proven himself. Solonik kept to himself in prison and after two years escaped again.
Solonik again went back home to Kurgan and there he joined the local notorious criminal organization where he started work as a hitman. Solonik's first target, the leader of a rival organization, has no chance and is whacked in 1990 in the city Tjumen. After this hit Solonik and some fellow gangsters from the Kurgan organization decide to go to Moscow. In Moscow there were jobs enough for a qualified killer such as Solonik. In 1992 Solonik whacks Russian vor Viktor Nikiforov, 6 months later another important Russian mob boss was whacked by Solonik. This time the victim was vor y zakone Valeri Dlugatsj, Dlugatsj was shot down in a crowded disco eventhough he was heavily guarded by bodyguards. In 1994 Vladislav Vinner is whacked by Solonik, Vinner had become boss after Dlugatsj death. These were all big hits but Solonik's biggest kill was yet to come. In 1994 Solonik tried to extort a Russian mobster and was told by that mobster that he didn't have to pay anything. The mobster made a phonecall and put the speaker on, Solonik knew the guy on the speaker it was Otari Kvantrishvili one of the most powerful Russian mobsters in Russian history. Solonik went home without the money. Several weeks later Kvantrishvilli is killed Solonik got his revenge and apparently had powerful backing, allegedly from Chechnian groups.
Solonik had by this time become a famous person among Underworld and law enforcement figures. Law enforcement especially had a special interest since Solonik was supposed to be in prison. When Solonik and a fellow criminal are having a drink at a Moscow marketplace they are apprehended by the Moscow militia. The militia doesn't frisk Solonik, a big mistake. Under his jacket Solonik carried an automatic weapon when Solonik and the militia members are inside the office Solonik decides to fire. He hits four militia members and runs outside, on the run he shoots two more militia members, still running Solonik was hit by a bullet but kept running eventually he was overpowered and gave up. Solonik was back in prison this time in Moscow. He went into surgery and the bullet was removed. In prison he studied foreign languages. In 1995 he escapes again. This time Solonik has little hidingplaces in Russia, his name and face are known and he is wanted by government and organized crime groups. Nobody knows where he is.
After his escape Solonik went to Greece using a passport with a false identity which he got from the Greek consulate in Moscow. In Greece Solonik set up his own organization of around 50 men which dealt in narcotic shipments and ofcourse Solonik's specialty contract killings. Solonik's organization bought several villa's in an Athenes suburb. All this was done in secrecy, the Russian media and government had no clue what had happened to Solonik and among the public Solonik's legend grew. Solonik already had the status of 'superkiller' and now had escaped law enforcement and organized crime. But in February 1997 the legend was over. Greek newspapers published articles that said a Russian mob boss had been found 15 miles from Athenes. The man that was found was strangled to death and had no identification documents on him, after fingerprints were taken his identity became clear: it was Aleksandr Solonik. In the weeks after Soloniks body was found Greek authorities raided the villa's of Solonik's organization and found an arsenal of weapons, it also became clear that within a week Solonik was expected in Italy for a contract killing. A killing he wouldn't finish. According to the rumors Solonik was whacked by a Moscow Organized Crime group according to the Russian legend Solonik is still alive and the body that was found was a fake put in place by Solonik.
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