Shadow Car Dealer in Uniform: how STK-Dobro foundation head Alexander Chernykh legalizes luxury through leasing and government contracts while bypassing sanctions

30 апреля 2026 г.

Evgeniy Dyatlov

A collector of luxury cars has emerged in the Urals. As media reports have revealed, an entire fleet of Rolls-Royce, Mercedes-Benz AMG, BMW, and Lexus vehicles has been assembled in Yekaterinburg by the aggregates company STK, owned by the Chernykh family — Anna (50%) and her son Alexander (50%).

The company has notable business partners, and the head of the Chernykh family has significant experience linked to the GRU.

Overall, the Federal Register (Fedresurs) contains 19 records of leasing agreements in favor of STK, all of which involve vehicles. Some of the data has been concealed — the company attempted to keep secret exactly which cars it purchased. However, in several records, the publishers failed to remove VIN numbers, which allowed our project to determine that the company, which trades in crushed stone and sand, is not buying KAMAZ trucks but luxury cars in bulk.

For example, this includes a black Rolls-Royce Cullinan that carried the license plate E013EE196. STK leased it from the company RESO-Leasing and insured it with PJSC SAK Energogarant (part of the Energogarant group, founded by former Minister of Fuel and Energy of the RSFSR and ex-president of RAO UES of Russia, Anatoly Dyakov).

This Rolls-Royce previously belonged to Mikhail Kholodtsov, a deputy of the Krasnodar Regional Legislative Assembly and beneficiary of OJSC Krasnodar Meat Processing Plant. The “distinctive” license plate was used until 2023 by an individual named Oleg Krikun. STK is also linked to a luxury purple Rolls-Royce Cullinan with the plate K013KK96.

In addition, STK leased a Rolls-Royce Spectre and two Mercedes-Benz AMG vehicles, one black and one gray, which were often parked together. These cars bore the already familiar plate E013EE196 and its “twin” E013EE96. These and several other Mercedes vehicles were acquired by STK from the St. Petersburg-based company Interleasing, owned by the family of the late millionaire Vladimir Kogan, who controlled UralSib Bank. All the Mercedes cars were manufactured in mid-2022, meaning they were imported into Russia in circumvention of sanctions.

STK remains profitable, but its earnings have been steadily declining since 2021 (from 102 million rubles to 34.4 million). Meanwhile, a single Rolls-Royce Spectre — even used — costs around 50 million rubles. Yet STK is acquiring such vehicles in bulk (and evidently not for its own use). Interestingly, despite declining net profit, the company’s revenue has been steadily increasing and reached 6.3 billion rubles by the end of 2025 — such low margins raise questions about possible aggressive tax optimization.

The fact is that STK is not an ordinary company. The head of the Chernykh family — a former GRU officer — reportedly works with long-standing partners in the oil industry.

STK closely cooperates with LLC NIPI Oil and Gas PETON, owned by billionaire brothers the Polyakovs — a major contractor for Gazprom Neft.

Another aggregates company owned by Alexander Chernykh, Russtroiservis, works with the St. Petersburg-based Gazprom Podzemremont Urengoy.

Alexander Chernykh is also active in public life: he serves as president of the Sverdlovsk Regional Muay Thai Federation and the STK-Dobro Foundation, and frequently appears in local media. During the war, his STK has launched joint projects with the Putin Team movement and directly cooperates with the “Defenders of the Fatherland” foundation.

The elder Chernykh is a former GRU special forces serviceman: he served in Germany in a reconnaissance and sabotage unit, which was formed on the basis of the Kirovohrad Airborne Special Forces Brigade and the Naitimen Guards Airborne Special Forces Brigade.