Prison "Black Dolphin": history, order, famous prisoners

Today there are more than 700 correctional colonies on the territory of the Russian Federation, but there are special ones where those sentenced to life imprisonment are imprisoned. Such institutions include the legendary “Black Dolphin”, which has a rich and long history.

The Black Dolphin special regime colony is located in the city of Sol-Iletsk in the Orenburg region of the Russian Federation, and it is the largest of all colonies of this type, which can accommodate 1,600 people within its walls. Today there are 863 people sentenced to capital punishment there, and the number of workers is about 900 people.

"Black Dolphin" during the USSR period

Since the mid-60s of the last century, “Black Dolphin” was an ordinary penal colony. In those days there was no famous sculpture located in the courtyard of the prison.

In 1942, the famous German actress Carola Neher died of typhus within the walls of this correctional institution. Having married communist Anatoly Bekker, she moved to the USSR in 1934. However, just two years later the couple was arrested and sent to prison under Article 58. Becker was shot, but Neer was luckier - she was sent to the Sol-Iletsk colony for 10 years. It is noteworthy that the couple were rehabilitated posthumously in 1959.

In the post-war period, the Sol-Iletsk colony had the status of an NKVD prison and was used to hold persons under investigation. In 1965, its purpose was changed again. From that moment on, prisoners suffering from severe forms of tuberculosis were kept in the prison.

The next refurbishment occurred in 2000, when the institution became a special regime colony. Since then, prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment have been held here. To achieve this, the cameras were radically reorganized, modern access and tracking systems were installed, and the staff was increased. In addition, a new building was put into operation.

At the moment, “Black Dolphin” is the largest special regime colony. It is designed to simultaneously accommodate 1,600 people.

Brief description of the most terrible prison in Russia

Federal government institution “Correctional Colony No. 6 of the Office of the Federal Penitentiary Service for the Orenburg Region” - this is exactly the dry and official inscription hanging over the doors of the Black Dolphin.

Where it is located - not far from the border with Kazakhstan, near Orenburg, in Sol-Iletsk - a small town with a population of 27 thousand inhabitants, a couple of engineering and salt mining enterprises and a very arid climate.

The colony owes its name to the figurine of a dolphin that jumps out of a stone fountain located in front of the entrance to the prison. The history of the place of imprisonment and the time prisoners spent there contains many interesting facts and goes back more than one century. Back in the Russian Empire, convicts were sent here to work in salt mines.

The regime for serving a sentence in a colony is defined as special. Living conditions in custody are regulated by Article 127 of the Criminal Executive Code of the Russian Federation. This regime imposes strict requirements for the placement of prisoners and concerns:

• conditions of detention;
• the procedure for spending personal funds;
• the number and types of visits provided;
• parcels, transfers and parcels.

You can learn more about the history of the prison in Sol Iletsk “Black Dolphin” and see the list of prisoners here.

We will consider the features of the punishment serving regime separately. Below are the contact details of the institution and other useful information:

• Postal address : 461530, Orenburg region, Sol-Iletsk, st. Sovetskaya, 6.
• E-mail address
• You can contact the colony leadership not only in writing, but also in person. Reception hours on weekdays from 15.00 to 18.00, visitors are received on a first-come, first-served basis, with veterans and participants of the Great Patriotic War and persons equivalent to them, as well as disabled people of the first and second groups, having the right to an extraordinary reception.

You can contact the following people with questions:

You can clarify the internal number of the employee you are interested in and decide which personnel you need by calling the reception phone number: 8 (35336) 36-2-08.
Any emergency information - call the duty department: 8 (35336) 36-2-00.

Additional information about the colony can be obtained from the following information resources:

• https://56.fsin.su/structure/detail.php?ELEMENT_ID=4985 – the official page of the institution in the GUFSIN, here, among other things, you can apply for registration of transfer and granting a visit.
• https://vk.com/blackdolphinrus is the largest group on VKontakte, uniting close relatives of Black Dolphin prisoners, lawyers providing legal assistance, and simply caring people. The group is closed, but access from the real page is obtained without any problems.
• https://vk.com/club16985548 – a smaller, open group.

For relatives and close relatives of prisoners, visiting rooms and a point for receiving parcels, parcels and packages operate according to the following schedule:

• 8.00 – 13.00 – applications are accepted from persons who came for a date, parcels and transfers;
• 13.00 – 14.00 - lunch break;
• 14.00 – 19.00 – issuance of parcels, packages and packages.

Parcels are accepted from the central post office every week on Thursdays. In addition, a store is open for relatives of convicts daily from 9.00 to 21.00 (with a lunch break from 13.00 to 15.00).

At the turn of the century

The official name of this prison is IK-6, that is, “correctional colony No. 6.” However, in Russia this institution is better known as “Black Dolphin”. The fact is that in front of the entrance to the administrative building of the colony there is a sculpture of a dolphin. It was built in 1996.

The prisoners themselves can only see the sculpture on TV, because they are brought to the territory of the colony in a closed paddy wagon. The movement of prisoners between buildings is carried out in a half-bent position. The prisoner's hands are tied behind his back, and a bag made of thick black fabric is placed over his head.

Such measures may seem unnecessary, but we should remember exactly what kind of contingent is kept in the cells of the “Black Dolphin”, and everything immediately falls into place. Such a strict attitude towards prisoners is practiced for the following reasons:

1. The Black Dolphin contains especially dangerous criminals, and therefore the prison administration is doing everything possible to prevent escape. With a bag on his head, the prisoner will not be able to remember the location of the buildings and the layout of the corridors, and, accordingly, will not plan an escape.
2. All contact between prisoners is prohibited. The prisoners simply do not know who is in the neighboring cells. This is necessary to ensure the safety of some prisoners. For example, today in the “Black Dolphin” is Oleg Rylkov, who was convicted of murder and rape of minor girls. If other prisoners had found out about his crimes, Rylkov would most likely have been beaten to death.
3. The colony is located within the city limits. Its courtyard is clearly visible from the windows of residential buildings located in the neighborhood. Concealing the identity of prisoners allows you to avoid blood feud, because an outside observer will not be able to find out who exactly is being led through the territory.

The Black Dolphin colony is known for its extremely harsh prison regime. The prisoners are kept in cells designed to accommodate 2-4 people. Particularly dangerous criminals are kept in solitary confinement. For example, the murderer and cannibal Vladimir Nikolaev is in solitary confinement.

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The Black Dolphin contingent consists of the following persons:

• terrorists;
• leaders of organized crime groups;
• Caucasian warlords;
• serial killers.

Criminals of the “old school” also end up in “Black Dolphin”. For example, Valery Skoptsov began his criminal activities in his youth, in the 60s of the last century. For a long time he carried out thefts and specialized in car theft. Having mastered the skills of an engraver, he began to forge documents.

In the mid-90s of the last century, Skoptsov committed several murders, as a result of which he ended up in IK-6. Here he died in 2004.

Within the walls of the “Black Dolphin” there may be not only a murderer, a rapist or a terrorist. For example, Sergei Volkov was brought here for possession of large quantities of drugs. Moreover, his sentence is only 5 years, which cannot be compared with life imprisonment.

However, it was not for nothing that Volkov was assigned to IK-6. There are several reasons for this:

1. Volkov is a crime boss who at one time even managed to “uncoronate” another thief in law. Therefore, he was assigned to IK-6 in order to isolate him as much as possible from his accomplices.
2. Today, “Black Dolphin” includes not only special but also strict regime buildings. On the territory of the colony there is also a colony-settlement where prisoners serving different sentences are kept.

By the way, in 2016, there was even an escape from the colony, organized by Alexander Alexandrov, convicted of robbery. However, the fugitive was quickly caught and returned to his place.

Mode

The inmates cannot communicate with each other. There are no more than two to four people in each cell. There are also those who are kept in solitary confinement. There is no standard division for other prisons according to the terms of detention or the severity of the crime. For example, a former policeman and a rapist can sit in the same cell.

Prison gate with dolphins

The prisoners are constantly monitored and sleep with the lights on. Video surveillance is carried out even in showers and toilets. The security guards check the cameras every 15 minutes. Each cell is a kind of “cage within a cage”, as prisoners are separated from doors and windows by additional bars. Moreover, the size of the chamber does not exceed four and a half square meters. Prisoners spend most of their time here, in this essentially small and cramped coffin...

The prescribed daily walks take about an hour a day; for exemplary behavior they can be increased to two hours. Walks are carried out in specially designated boxes.

Prisoners get up at 6 am. They must immediately make the bed, wash themselves and put away the cell. At 7.00 – breakfast, the radio starts working (until 8.00). At 8 o'clock verification begins, after which there is an examination by doctors. At 10.00 – walk in a special narrow box, visit to doctors (if necessary).

At 13:00 there is lunch, from 14:00 to 17:00 the radio is on. Dinner at 18.00. At 20.00 – evening verification. At 22.00 – lights out. During the daytime, lying on the bed is prohibited; you can only sit on a stool. As for food, prisoners are mainly served soup and bread. There is no special dining room; prisoners eat directly in their cells.

The prison has a shoe and sewing workshop. There is even a kind of “vacation” provided for working prisoners - once a year they are placed for twelve days in a special building, where they have the opportunity to play tennis and watch TV. Prisoners can also write letters “from outside”. Four visits are allowed per year: two short-term and two three-day.

Escape from the Black Dolphin is impossible. No one has ever managed to escape. Of course, newcomers made such attempts - but they did not end in success. Such prisoners were put in a punishment cell for fifteen days and their daily food was cut off. In 2022, information was confirmed that one of the prisoners, a certain Alexander Alexandrov, managed to escape (for the first time in the history of the prison). However, he was not kept on death row, but in a settlement colony. The fugitive was subsequently caught. Interestingly, the prisoner was supposed to be released within six months. He managed to escape from a work site where cinder blocks were being made.

Our days

Today, the Black Dolphin houses mainly especially dangerous criminals. One of them is Radik Galiakberov, nicknamed “Raja”, the leader of the Kazan group “Hadi Taktash”. In 2002, he received a life sentence because he organized many murders of businessmen.

At the moment, one of the most brutal serial killers in the Russian Federation, Vadim Ershov, is being held in IK-6. Having committed 19 murders and more than 40 robberies, he received the nickname “Krasnoyarsk Beast”. In 1998, he was sentenced to death. However, due to the moratorium, the punishment was replaced by life imprisonment.

Another Black Dolphin prisoner, Mikhail Popkov, has 78 murders to his name. The maniac killed girls and young women. Moreover, he committed most of the crimes while working in the police. Popkov committed his first murder back in 1992, but law enforcement officers managed to catch him only in 2010. The court verdict is life imprisonment in IK-6.

The Sol-Iletsk colony has existed for more than 260 years. This prison periodically changes statuses and names, and today is the place of “residence” of the most dangerous Russian criminals. The regime of detention of prisoners in the “Black Dolphin” is recognized as one of the most severe in the world.

How prisoners work and rest

Approximately 400 prisoners work in the sewing and shoe shops, where there is a real massacre for places. Work is almost the only way to occupy time and get distracted. Prisoners make slippers and other shoes, as well as bed linen. Black Dolphin products are in quite high demand among local enterprises.

In the cells, prisoners are prohibited from talking loudly, singing songs, making noise and smoking. Once a day they are allowed to listen to the radio, but only for half an hour. Some cells have televisions that were bought and brought to the prisoners by their relatives. In this case, convicts can watch some channels, for example, “First” and “Match-TV,” but strictly for four hours.

The Black Dolphin also has a fairly extensive library, it contains more than 12,000 different books. There are both classics and modern literature. In the same library, prisoners can only play checkers (dominoes and chess are prohibited due to the risk of injury) or write a letter to family or the prosecutor. Special regime prisoners are allowed to meet with relatives or friends four times a year, and those who work in sewing workshops can even count on a twelve-day vacation in a neighboring, more comfortable building.

Tatyana Taranova10/11/2018

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