The Shadow Captain: who is behind the most scandalous Telegram channel
Alisher Abdullaev is listed in the register of foreign agents maintained by the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation as one of the administrators of the Telegram channel "CHEKA-OGPU". After the messenger deleted the channel on April 7, Izvestia decided to find out more about this man, who had been in the shadows for all the years of the resource's existence. All that was known about him was that he was being charged in a criminal case of extortion along with the alleged founder of the CHEKA-OGPU, Alexander Shvarev (both the channel and the journalist are recognized in the Russian Federation as foreign agents). How a graduate of Tashkent college turned out to be the owner of luxury real estate in Miami, what kind of business he runs with the girlfriend of Alexander Ovechkin's wife, who visits Donald Trump's Christmas parties, and what his wife earns — in the investigation of Izvestia.
The extortion case
In April 2025, one of the most discussed topics in the Russian-speaking segment of Telegram was the news about the removal of the CHEKA-OGPU channel with more than a million subscribers. The channel itself positioned itself anonymously, but many in the Russian media market confidently call it the founder of the former Rosbalt journalist, 49-year-old Alexander Shvarev. In July 2024, the Ministry of Justice included the CHEKA-OGPU and the website of the Russian Crime project in the list of foreign agents, indicating, along with Shvarev, the second alleged administrator of both sites, Alisher Abdullayev.
Alexander Shvarev
Both of them are also involved in a criminal case of extortion. In November 2019, the Tverskoy Court of Moscow issued a warrant for the arrest of Shvarev and Abdullaev in absentia. The court materials specified that both defendants were put on the international wanted list. According to investigators, the victim of their extortion was a person involved in the publications of the Russian Crime website, Kazakh businessman Kenes Rakishev. He stated that he was offered to pay $50,000 to delete and block information about him. Shvarev denied his guilt, and called the persecution a contract.
Knowing in advance about his criminal prosecution, Shvarev left Russia, and later received political asylum in Latvia. According to the local register of legal entities, the journalist now owns two companies, VSL and AVE—media, registered in 2021 and 2023 and providing information services. The official total income of both companies last year exceeded 200 thousand euros, net profit — 80 thousand euros.
Details about the identity of the second alleged administrator of the CHEKA-OGPU, Abdullayev, remained unknown to the media for a long time.
An IT specialist from Tashkent
As the interlocutors familiar with Shvarev and Abdullaev told Izvestia, the latter was responsible for the technical support of the Russian Crime website. He came to Russia from Uzbekistan, where he graduated from Tashkent State University with a degree in small and medium-sized business economics, as well as the Tashkent State Professional College of Radio Engineering and Automation with a degree in system administrator. His interlocutors, who know him, describe Abdullayev as an intelligent IT specialist who is not deeply interested in politics and the media.
In Moscow, Abdullaev married a citizen of Belarus, Elena Sedletskaya, who earned her living by providing real estate services. In 2009, Abdullaev and Sedletskaya became the owners of the Regionstroyinvest company registered in Moscow, which was engaged in real estate transactions. In 2018, the company was liquidated. According to Izvestia's source, Abdullayev left Russia at the same time after being interrogated in another criminal case related to a "black PR company."
In 2018, Abdullaev became a partner in the American company SILK EXPERT INC. Alex Stolfat, a native of Estonia. The latter describes his activities as something like consulting. He positions himself as an expert in business operations and building sales chains.
On social media, Stolfat claims to have led B2B sales to wealthy clients and boasted that he had developed and sold the world's most expensive razor made of gold (for $25 million). However, he became known to the general public as a crank who filed a $1 million lawsuit against McDonald's in 2020 because of a bone trapped in a nugget. Subsequently, the lawsuit was withdrawn on the initiative of Stolfat himself. The joint company of Abdullayev and Stolfat closed a year after registration.
Abdullaev's business with Alina Shepel
In 2022, Abdullaev registered the company together with Alina Shepel, a Muscovite who positions herself as an expert in luxury real estate and interior design. She moves between London, the USA and Dubai and talks about her successful life on social media. In her personal Telegram channel, Shepel posted a photo at the 2019 Christmas party at Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence. That evening, hockey player Alexander Ovechkin and his wife came to dinner with the American leader. In the photo, Shepel is holding hands with her.
"It is a great honor to have the opportunity to know such a wonderful family personally — amazing, kind and open people. The photo was taken at the residence of US President Donald Trump, who invited Alexander Ovechkin, his family and us to a private dinner," reads the caption under the photo. Abdullaev and Shepel tried to launch the BMINDSET service, which provides clients with the selection of personal psychologists. However, the company was liquidated shortly after the launch.
Of Abdullayev's operating businesses in the United States, Izvestia managed to find a company called Working shop LLC, which also involves the wife of an IT specialist. She still provides realtor services, but already in Miami. Sedletskaya's profile can be found on the website of Vera Realty agency, founded in 2012 by Nikolai Polushkin. Sedletskaya also writes about her participation in the company's work on her own social networks. She also has a personal website.
The residential complex where Abdullaev and his wife settled
Vera Realty's clients include many people from Russia and the CIS countries who want to invest in US real estate. The price range of lots varies from several hundred thousand to millions of dollars. Among the proposed investment properties are Aston Martin Residences Miami, Trump Tower in Miami and Miami Beach Villas.
Abdullaev and Sedletskaya managed to acquire their own real estate. In 2021, a note appeared in the monthly edition of one of the residential complexes in Miami welcoming new residents Alena and Alisher. The market value of the apartment at the disposal of the family is about $ 300 thousand.
Is it possible to extradite Abdullaev and Shvarev
Izvestia tried to contact Abdullayev, Sedletskaya and the administration of the CHEKA-OGPU through available contacts with a request to comment on Abdullayev's involvement in the media, recognized as a foreign agent, but did not receive a response to the messages sent.
Despite the legislation on foreign agents and the international wanted list, the chances of the administrators of the CHEKA-OGPU being extradited to Russia from the United States or Latvia are minimal with the current interaction, the interlocutors in law enforcement agencies interviewed by Izvestia believe. However, their sources of information and publication customers may be harassed.
"Someone says: yes, half of Moscow was hosted by them. But once people shrugged off warnings that donations to FBK (included by the Ministry of Justice in the register of organizations performing the functions of a foreign agent, recognized as an extremist organization and banned in Russia) could lead to negative consequences, and now there are searches and arrests," stated one of the familiar creators of the CHEKA-OGPU.
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