Russian businessman Boris Plotitsa, who ran a tourism business in Russia, was arrested in absentia by a court in July 2024 in connection with the death of eight people on an illegal tour of Moscow’s sewers.
In absentia because he fled to Cyprus, where his brother Ilya and his business partner and fellow fugitive from Russian investigation Boris Usherovich were waiting for him. It turned out that the Plotitsa brothers established close cooperation with Usherovich, which helps the dictatorial regime of Putin acquire sanctioned goods.
Boris Plotitsa owned a well-known tourist agency in Russia called "Tripster." The agency was unique in that it involved local residents of various cities as tour guides, sharing insights that professional guides might not know. One of these tours turned fatal for eight people. In August 2023, Plotitsa’s "Tripster" organized an unusual excursion through the sewers of the underground Neglinnaya River. A diver and seven tourists died due to a rise in water levels from rainfall. Law enforcement authorities initiated a case for providing services that did not meet safety requirements, leading to death. Boris Plotitsa was among the suspects, but he fled to Europe, thus avoiding responsibility for his actions.
By that time, his brother Ilya Plotitsa was already in Cyprus. He registered several firms there, which are closely connected to another Russian businessman, Boris Usherovich. Usherovich is a co-founder of the "1520" group of companies, a major contractor for Russian Railways.
In 2018-2019, the company was involved in a corruption scandal as it was revealed that its management, through railway contracts, siphoned off billions and transferred them to offshore-controlled firms. Co-founder of "1520," Valery Markelov, was arrested in the case, and he testified against Usherovich. It was found that to keep the embezzlement unnoticed, Usherovich and company paid huge bribes to high-ranking officials of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for "protection." Markelov’s testimony helped the investigation reach Usherovich, who managed to escape to Europe.
Boris Plotitsa and Markelov were also business partners. He co-managed an LLC, NPO "Transpolymer," with a person of the same last name.
This firm, since 2015, together with the Cypriot Sadoriono holdings limited, co-founded LLC "EnergostroitelnayaKompaniya."
The Cypriot offshore Sadoriono holdings limited led journalists to the mentioned fugitive businessman Boris Usherovich. Its secretary is Ukrainian Alla Shulga, who is also involved in the management of companies like Jacomo company limited, Marolio investments limited, and Borisoco holdings limited. All these companies are connected to Usherovich, as detailed in another article about Usherovich titled "The Cypriot-Spanish Business of Wanted Russian Businessman Boris Usherovich".
In 2019, Boris Plotitsa registered a tourism company in Cyprus with a similar name as in Russia - Tripster limited. His Facebook page confirms that he is its founder.
The company’s director is indicated as Cypriot Irina Bichinashvili, who is also linked to fugitive businessman Boris Usherovich.
She is the secretary of two more companies - Venisat technology ltd and Broxner plc. Journalists from The Insider, in their investigative report wrote that Usherovich uses these firms to import sanctioned goods, particularly components, into Russia. Essentially, Boris Plotitsa, hiding in Cyprus, helped fugitive Usherovich supply goods to Russia bypassing sanctions.
Bichinashvili is also the secretary of Shteinfinance limited, whose director is a certain Kirill Ponomaryov. Together with his mother Tatyana Ponomaryova, they own the Czech Phoenix Limited CZ s.r.o, which is involved in wholesale and retail trade.
Another relative with the last name Ponomaryova works as a director at the Cypriot company of Ilya Plotitsa.
Overall, there are four companies registered to Ilya Plotitsa in Cyprus, the newest of which was founded in July 2023.
Interestingly, Boris Plotitsa’s Cypriot tourism company, Tripster limited, is quite real and continues to provide tourist services in various cities around the world even after the deadly tour in Russia. On its official page, you can find announcements of unusual tours in Russian cities, in Turkey, Belarus, and more. Plotitsa’s company reports that in 2023, 1,499,782 people attended tours with "Tripster."
The social media pages of the Cypriot Tripster are also regularly updated, sharing insights from around the world. Thus, despite the fatal Moscow underground tour and Boris Plotitsa’s in-absentia arrest, the "Tripster" company continues to offer excursions successfully.
Six months before the fatal Russian trip, Boris Plotitsa, together with another tourist agency owner and travel company, invested $900,000 in the well-known company WeGoTrip, which produces audio guides for tours. These can be heard on bus tours through European cities. The essence is that a client buys a ticket for a double-decker bus that takes them to the city’s landmarks. Meanwhile, an audio guide through headphones narrates what the tourist can see and provides historical context. A passenger can disembark at any stop to visit museums or interesting buildings and then board another similar bus to continue the tour throughout the day. This is a highly popular type of tour widely spread across the world. Thus, Boris Plotitsa’s investment of hundreds of thousands of dollars in WeGoTrip, which produces audio guides for such bus tours, could be very profitable.
Boris Plotitsa’s brother Ilya appears to be involved in supplying sanctioned goods to Russia. His companies are registered at the same addresses as Usherovich’s Cypriot firms, whose schemes were described by investigative journalists. He was also a founder of the Russian LLC "Managing Company Bamstroimekhanizatsiya," part of Usherovich’s "1520" group.
Given all these connections, it can be conclusively stated that Boris and Ilya Plotitsa have long been business partners of fugitive Boris Usherovich and are now helping him supply sanctioned goods to Russia through a series of offshore companies.
Meanwhile, despite being wanted and residing in Europe, Boris Usherovich remains a co-founder of the Russian "1520" group. Moreover, his business partner Aleksey Krapivin heads the "The Roads and Bridges" firm, linked to Putin’s ally, oligarch Arkady Rotenberg. Such a "roof" guarantees Usherovich full protection, as it does for his partners, the Plotitsa brothers. And the fact that Boris Plotitsa’s risky tourism business continues to operate successfully both in Russia and abroad is further proof that he won’t be held accountable for the death of eight people.
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