But the "thieves in law" aren't that much of a privilege status today (with several exceptions), since they have to be bound by some traditions, like they can't officialy register companies on their own names, they theoretically aren't allowed to marry, should do at least some prison time in their lives etc. Many of them don't observe those original rules today of course, and just buy the status, but anyway they still can't run for political elections and have other limits. Even the police takes them less seriously than those "new" gangsters formed in the 90s who don't necessarily have done prison time and don't have any formal "duty" to observe specific criminal traditions. For example, there is a widely used practice to plant drugs and weapons on thieves in law, if somebody needs to quickly remove them from the streets, they don't even bother with making "good" and "realistic" frame-ups: sometimes they "catch" with drugs a thief in law who is known for having a healthy life, doing much sport and could in no way be a user, while if he was a dealer, he surely wouldn't be that stupid to keep the drugs in his own pocket, while walking through the city. The fact that planting drungs and weapons has become a widely used practice, shows that thieves in law aren't really feared or held in much regard by the police and their criminal rivals, connected to the police. They are some exceptions, like Vladimir Tiurin from Bratsk, Oleg Shishkanov from Moscow, or like the already dead Aslan Usoyan, their status is still powerful, but they are exceptions, in my opinion the fact the police doesn't use clumsy frame-ups to put them away, this is "in spite of" they are thieves in law, and not "because" they are thieves in law.

On the other hand, when it comes to "businessmen" or "politician" criminals who don't belong to the conservative wing of the underworld and don't have the thief in law status, but are owners of big companies, banks, hold political offices etc, the police doesn't dare to put drugs in their pockets to have an excuse to arrest them, or they are afraid to beat them up in prison. Look at the "Solntsevskaya bratva" boss Sergei Mikhailov, who got a public award from Putin, and other Russian mafia bosses of "new formation". Many years ago a policeman "dared" to strike MIkhailov on the head during a search oh his house, they made it national news, unlike the everyday arrests of thieves in law.

It's even worse: the n.3 of the Solntsevskaya, Alexander Averin and his "soldiers", in 2007 beat up senseless and broke the jaw of an official of the FSO, an institution that provides bodyguards for politicians, including the president. The police had a hard time to arrest him. When they finally managed to do so, Averin wreaked havoc at the station, took a printer from a table, threw it on the floor, cursed at the policemen and his own lawyer, almost started another fight right there at the station, and the policemen didn't even react or "dare" to handcuff him and force him to calm down. The same day he was out on bail, even though his behavior at the station was filmed by the cameras, and later he was not only acquitted, but the judge said he had the right to a financial compensation. I am not joking, if you want, I can post a link to one of the articles about this trial outcome. The beaten-up FSO official said too, he had no complaints against Averin. And you know why did he beat that man up? Because he "dared" to try to prevent Averin and his gang from raping a waitress in a restaurant on "his territory", publicly during the day! Nobody brought an indictment for this attempted gang rape, which happened in a restaurant full of people.

To sum it up: in Russia not only you can be a gangster and get away with it if you are poweful enough. You can be even a DUMB gangster and get away with it. You can be BRAINLESS AS A TREE STUMP and behave in a way that corresponds to this description, and still get away with it, even if you do it in front of the cameras. It's insane, but it's true.

Don't know why doesn't Putin put away the "Solntsevskaya" bosses, why does he NEED them. Theoretically, having no scruples from a legal or moral point of view, he could frame them for something to have an excuse to confiscate all the immense financial empire they have built, solving many of Russia's economy problems in this way, and even leaving something to pocket for himsef and his friends. Still, he prefers them to remain free, even dumb assholes like Averin.