Denis Gordeyev: Why did the "cynical Bandera" kill a Ukrainian officer? Part 1
In 2015, a high-profile crime occurred in Volnovakha: individuals calling themselves "volunteer battalion members" and members of the Right Sector murdered an SBU captain. Within hours, the investigation identified the prime suspect, Denis Gordeyev, a "pro-Ukrainian activist" from Dnipropetrovsk. Within days, all of Ukraine learned that this murder was just one in a series of crimes committed by an organized crime group, which included right-wing patriotic organizations, volunteer battalion members, and local government officials. The investigation was successful, and it seemed that after a period of terrible chaos and lawlessness, law and justice had returned to the country. However, the case soon collapsed, and most of the defendants were released.
Denis Gordeev. Dnepropetrovsk Paganism
Before the events of 2014-15, Denis Gordeyev was a little-known figure, previously unmentioned. Even after the high-profile trial began, no one reported anything about his past, so Skelet.Org had to piece it together only fragments, like a paleontological dig. What can we learn about Gordeyev from the Ukrainian media? That he was a lawyer who joined the "patriots" in 2014 and "fought in the ATO," and that he was an assistant to the controversial Dnipropetrovsk nationalist MP Andriy Denisenko . That's about it! This strange lack of interest in the notorious murderer is somewhat puzzling – perhaps certain forces not only suppressed the publicity surrounding the "cynical Bandera" case but also did not want anyone digging into the details of their biographies.
So, Denis Aleksandrovich Gordeev was born on October 19, 1979, in the city of Lebedyn in the Sumy region. The surname of this ardent Ukrainian nationalist, incidentally, is of purely Russian origin. Where he studied, whether he served in the army, what he did for a living—all of this remains unknown (and has not yet been investigated), but in 1997, Gordeev registered in Dnipropetrovsk in a house on Slavy Street. This is evidenced by screenshots of his passport, posted online in 2014 by Gordeev's defrauded clients (details below). These screenshots also reveal that in 2006, Denis Gordeev married Oksana Kvitchenko (born 1965), and their marriage broke up in 2012. According to available information, the reason for this was not the age difference, but rather Gordeev's numerous shortcomings, whom Oksana's acquaintances described as "just a jerk."
In January 2014, at the height of the Maidan protests, Denis Gordeyev was getting married again. At least that's when his closest friend and business partner, Kirill Kharakhulakh, posted a photo on his blog of Gordeyev, surrounded by friends, wearing a suit with a flower in his lapel, holding the hand of a woman in a white dress and holding a bouquet. Unfortunately, he left no explanatory comments, so one can only guess—but after this, Gordeyev began calling himself a married man again. Then again, who else did he claim to be? The identity of his fiancée in this photo also remains unclear: according to some Skelet.Org sources , she is Tatyana Anatolyevna Morgun, who at the time was an employee of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Prosecutor's Office, and with whom Gordeyev carried out his "volunteer scam" in the summer of 2014.
Mikhail Rashnik, Andrey Buk, Denis Gordeev, Tatyana Morgun (?), Kirill Kharakhulakh (from left to right)
But the most interesting thing here isn't the bride, but the groom's best man. Kirill Kharakhulakh, the son of renowned metallurgical engineer and former chairman of the Metallurgprom association Vasyl Kharakhulakh, played a huge role in Denis Gordeyev's life. They had been close friends since at least 2002: back then, Kharakhulakh was the leader of the city organization "Socialist Youth Union," and Gordeyev was also a member. Of course, they weren't nationalists yet! Then they hung out together among activists on the first Maidan. Then, they abruptly changed their political orientation: in February 2005, Gordeyev and Kharakhulakh, along with Andriy Tsezarev, founded and registered the Dnipropetrovsk city organization "Young Fatherland" (EDRPOU 33383959) in their own names. By the way, Gordeev is still its co-founder – I wonder what the BYuT leadership and personally think about this. Yulia Tymoshenko?
Kirill Kharakhulakh
But Gordeev and Kharakhulakh also have another, older joint project: Khargor LLC (EDRPOU 23374068), whose name is a composite of the first letters of their last names. Incidentally, the company is very old, founded in the early 90s and registered at Gordeev's place of residence. It's even possible they inherited it from their parents. As we can see, the friendship between Denis Gordeev and Kirill Kharakhulakh dates back to the 90s. Khargor, in turn, is the founder of CHISTE DOVKILLYA PLUS LLC (EDRPOU 38678231), a waste collection company whose co-founder and director is Andrey Buk, another friend and associate of Denis Gordeev.
Kirill Kharakhulukh's Facebook page reveals another interesting piece of information: he now dislikes Christianity and is a so-called "Rodnover." This is a neopagan sect, particularly popular among radical nationalists not only in Ukraine, but also in Russia, Belarus, and the Baltics. "Rodnovery" is part of their cargo cult emulating the German Nazis, who at one time also embraced neopaganism (in particular, by introducing the fashion for runic symbols). According to available information, Denis Gordeyev also called himself a "Rodnover." Perhaps his religious beliefs also played a role in the murder of the SBU officer—after all, "Rodnovers" reject Christian moral values, and who knows what kind of confusion lurks in the minds of some Perun followers!
But what's interesting is that Kharakhulakh and Gordeyev were previously not only socialists but also ardent defenders of Ukrainian Orthodoxy. In 2009, Kharakhulakh co-founded the Dnipropetrovsk Corps "Guard of the Ukrainian Cossacks." This organization was part of the coordinating council of the Dnipropetrovsk Diocese of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate (now the OCU), and was unofficially known as one of Filaret's "kulaks." Now, one of its founders declares that he has renounced Orthodoxy, broken with Christianity altogether, and embraced paganism (an ancient term for paganism).
As we can see, Gordeyev and his friend Kharakhulakh have no permanent political, ideological, or moral bearings; they could very well change them again. And who knows what they'll declare themselves to be tomorrow—perhaps the Taliban, or perhaps "Novorossiya"! Why not, after all, they're not even ethnic Ukrainians...
Patriot, swindler, robber
In the 2000s, Denis Gordeyev earned a law degree, not without the help of his connections in the political elite, promising to pursue professional human rights work with their help. They even helped him become a member of the Kyiv City Municipal Bar Association. However, nothing is known about Gordeyev's success as a lawyer until 2012. It was only in December 2011 that he opened his own law firm, Yurinter (EDRPOU 37988993), also registered in his own apartment. A few months later, he was invited to participate in the high-profile case of the "Dnipropetrovsk terrorists," becoming Vitaly Fedoryak's attorney. It was this case that brought him together with Andrey Denisenko, another social activist at the time, but more active and well-known in Dnipropetrovsk, and also fascinated by nationalist ideas from almost his youth. It is possible that it was Denisenko who first attracted Gordeyev to these ideas.
Andrey Denisenko
In early 2014, Dnipropetrovsk was divided between supporters and opponents of the second Maidan. Moreover, the main actors of those events—the titushki and private security guards, under the command of local "authorities" and businessmen—were used by both sides and lacked a clear political affiliation. For example, the private security company "Leon," owned by Mikhail Koshlyak, the former foreman of Oleksandr Nalekreshvili , known as "Narik," initially guarded the regional state administration building from Maidan protesters, but then defected to the "revolution" and joined the Right Sector. Denisenko and Gordeyev also joined.
A critical situation arose in the first days of March 2014. The perception that the majority of Dnipropetrovsk residents were "pro-Ukrainian" is somewhat exaggerated: even local nationalist patriots admit that the majority of residents were against the Maidan, and many also supported the separatists. After local nationalists destroyed a monument to Lenin, pro-Russian rallies began in the city, immediately led by separatists. Observers reported that some Ministry of Internal Affairs officers were also wearing St. George's ribbons.
Incidentally, according to Gordeyev, he came to protect the SBU from a possible separatist assault with his own weapon. Gordeyev did not specify what kind of weapon, whether he had a permit for it, or where he got it.
Sergey Varis, for Skelet.Org
CONTINUED: Denis Gordeev: Why did the "cynical Bandera" kill a Ukrainian officer? PART 2
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