Vladislav Karataev, known within The Cleaners gang by the nickname “Persik” (Russian for “Peach”), was one of the lesser-known but still deeply involved members of the Russian neo-Nazi murder group that terrorized Moscow and its surrounding regions between 2014 and 2015. Born around 1994, Karataev came from Pavlovo, a small town about 70 kilometers from Nizhny Novgorod. Raised by his father, he had a troubled background marked by mental health concerns.

At some point in his youth, Karataev spent time in a psychiatric hospital and was reportedly prescribed medication, though details about his condition remain unclear. During court proceedings, psychological evaluations determined that he was partially sane, a legal classification in Russia suggesting diminished capacity, but not full legal insanity.

Despite his troubled mental history, Karataev became involved in extremist ideologies and connected with other gang members through far-right online spaces like VKontakte. His role wasn’t intellectual or strategic, he wasn’t a planner like Pavel Voitov, but he did act as an active participant and enabler of the group’s violent acts.

While not the most prolific of the group, Vladislav Karataev was directly involved in two confirmed murders carried out by The Cleaners. These were not random acts but targeted, ideologically, driven executions. The group targeted the homeless, alcoholics, and other vulnerable individuals they considered burdens on society. The murders were committed with shocking cruelty, often involving dozens of stab wounds and blunt-force trauma from hammers or stones.

In Karataev’s two confirmed killings, he acted alongside Pavel Voitov and Elena Lobacheva. The exact dates and names of the victims were not published by Russian authorities, but forensic evidence and confessions confirmed his presence during these crimes. The attacks followed the group’s typical modus operandi: luring victims into isolated areas, attacking with a hammer, and then stabbing them repeatedly until dead.

Karataev was arrested in February 2015, shortly after Voitov and Lobacheva. He confessed during interrogation and was linked to the group via mobile phone data and the testimonies of the other suspects. His psychiatric history did not save him from conviction, though it was considered during sentencing.

During the 2017 trial, jurors found Karataev guilty of his role in the murders and other criminal acts associated with the gang. He, like the others, showed little remorse during proceedings. The court sentenced him to 16 years in a corrective labor colony, one of the harsher sentences outside of Voitov’s life imprisonment.