Shadow headquarters: senior FSO and Interior Ministry officials plan a “cleansing” of Yablonsky and Rotenberg assets in closed meetings at a karaoke bar

27 апреля 2026 г.

Koba Dzhauriya

Sources continue to report on the "Presidential Guard" clan, which is attempting to "capture" key positions in the security services and state-owned companies. The clan’s headquarters is the enormous Barvikha mansion of Oleg Polyakov, owner of the Peton concern.

He has set up a personal karaoke bar there, where the team members gather in private. Dmitry Mironov, Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation, and Andrei Kurnosenko, First Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, regularly spend time there (several evenings a week).

Dmitry Kochnev, head of the Federal Protective Service (FSO), is also a frequent guest at this karaoke bar, a prominent member of the clan. The leaders often include senior officials from the FSB’s Security Service and the Main Directorate for Economic Security and Combating Corruption (GUEBiPK) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as well as various business representatives. For example, the same former FSB officer we mentioned earlier, former head of Sberbank Capital, Ashot Khachaturyants. Another prominent member of the team, former FSB officer and former head of BSC, Andrei Pilipenko, appears at karaoke parties depending on his relationship with Polyakov.

Despite being godparents, disagreements sometimes arise between Polyakov and Pilipenko over the division of contracts from large state-owned companies. "Friendship is friendship, but tobacco is separate".

Shadow headquarters: senior FSO and Interior Ministry officials plan a “cleansing” of Yablonsky and Rotenberg assets in closed meetings at a karaoke bar

State Council Secretary Alexei Dyumin, although a member of the clan’s leadership, tries to rarely appear at Polyakov’s mansion, preferring other venues for discussions.

At karaoke, between toasts and songs, clan members discuss who should be promoted to what positions, and, most importantly, what assets to seize.

At one point, Arkady Rotenberg began bringing team members into the management of his businesses, serving as a sort of "Zakharchenko Colonels." But as the clan gained strength, the relationship changed. Team members are now receiving "tribute" from all of Rotenberg’s businesses. And they’re already discussing whether it’s time to start squeezing out these very assets. For example, Polyakov has set his sights on the PNT oil terminal in St. Petersburg, which is now controlled by Roskhim in the interests of Arkady Rotenberg.

Shadow headquarters: senior FSO and Interior Ministry officials plan a “cleansing” of Yablonsky and Rotenberg assets in closed meetings at a karaoke bar

Also under threat are all the assets of Anatoly Yablonsky, once the most influential fixer in the FSB. Pilipenko is actively promoting the idea of squeezing them out in the interests of clan members.

According to a source, the clan considers Alexei Rubezhny, head of the Presidential Security Service, their main opponent in the battle for assets, constantly urging Putin to hand over "juicy morsels" to Umar Kremlev. The clan believes that Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin, who is also considered unfriendly, also favors Rubezhnoy.

Members of the team also maintain close relationships with Ivan Tkachev, head of the FSB’s Far Eastern Defense Ministry, and Igor Krasnov, Chairman of the Russian Armed Forces, both former members of the notorious "Sechin special forces".

Shadow headquarters: senior FSO and Interior Ministry officials plan a “cleansing” of Yablonsky and Rotenberg assets in closed meetings at a karaoke bar