17 thousand for a fake: buy "real NKVD sheath knife"? Not a problem!

Irina Mishina

“Buy a Finnish NKVD (People's Commissariat of Internal Affaires) model 1935 from the manufacturer with the delivery throughout Russia. The catalog contains samples from the most demanded and proven types of steel”, - says the manufacturer's website from the Nizhny Novgorod region. There you can choose blades for every taste and size. All of them are marked with the symbols of the NKVD, as well as the Soviet hammer and sickle.

Prices for goods are in the range from 4 thousand to 17 thousand rubles. The most expensive option is the original design of the NKVD factory, made of forged steel M390, with a wooden sheath made of black hornbeam, handmade , at a 22-30 degree blade sharpening point... No matter how you look at this creation of Nizhny Novgorod blacksmiths, and a a knife or tourist stuff for fishing and hunting, this product does not resemble in any way. But for a murder weapon, all these characteristics of the product are just right.

It is possible that the white general Nikolay Skoblin, whose body was thrown into the sea by NKVD agents, was stabbed to death with exactly the same knife in an airplane flying from France to Spain. And the very reputation of Finnish knives, used by both the NKVD and criminals of all stripes, does not doubt the purpose of such specific products.

Suffice it to recall the legendary "Letter to Mother" by Sergey Yesenin:

“And you in the evening blue gloom

Often see one and the same picture:

Like someone in a tavern fight

Put a Finnish knife under my heart...”.

In the story "Cockroach" writer Mikhail Bulgakov tells how Vasily Rogov accidentally bought a Finnish knife as a load for the boots and then, having lost these boots and another fifty rubles of union money to a swindler, immediately stabbed him with a Finnish knife.

In order to buy a "Finnish knife of the NKVD", you just need to select the knife you like in the catalog and send the order. In Moscow, as many as 73 stores offer such blades - edged weapons for every taste. Most of the knives are produced by the IP Nazarov smithy in the Nizhny Novgorod region. We decided to ask why the People's Commissariat of Internal Affairs was chosen as the brand?

And then a very unexpected answer awaited us!

“Knives have nothing to do with the NKVD, they just sell better. It's fashionable now! Our knives are a modern development, they are not connected with the knives of the NKVD employees”, - explained the representative of the specialized store “Finki NKVD”, who refused to give his name. When asked if the store has a license for the production and sale of finches, the seller also did not answer and advised him to contact the manufacturer - to the forge “IP Nazarov Vladimir Vladimirovich” (IP - self-employed entrepreneur - noted by the editor).

We also called the forge "IP Nazarov", where "NKVD Finnish women" are produced. The employee who refused to introduce himself exclaimed:

“Yes, I have no idea at all about the technologies of the NKVD, about this NKVD and about Stalin. I was born in 1986!"

Oh how! It turns out that everything stated in advertisements and product descriptions under the brand name "Finnish NKVD knife" is a lie, deception, bullshit and marketing crap? But it is obvious that buyers treat the assurances of the manufacturer and sellers without any irony and humor, and no one will give from 4 to 17 thousand rubles for imitation of a finca.

In the public domain, it was not difficult to find information about the forge. This small business, located in the city of Vorsma, Nizhny Novgorod Region, was registered in 2014. The main activity is the production of cutlery and cutlery, among the additional - forging, pressing, jewelry production. This individual entrepreneur also has government contracts. Thus, the smithy became a supplier in the state procurement for the amount of 102,000 rubles. The customer was the Duma of the Chukotka Autonomous Okrug. So, with a high degree of probability, we can assume that the deputies of the Chukotka Duma are now without exception armed.

In the vigorous activity of the shops of the "Finnish knives of NKVD" another alarming. The fact is that in Russia there is Article 222 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which provides for punishment for illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation or carrying of weapons.

Client's Desire and the Law

According to the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, edged weapons are a specific thing designed to injure a selected target using the strength of a person's musculature. Melee weapons, which are capable of causing injury, are distinguished by the diameter and volume of the handle, by the size of the blade blade, by the width of the butt. In addition to various types of knives, sabers, daggers, brass knuckles, stilettos are referred to melee weapons. The law prohibits blades and knives that have a blade of more than 9 cm. It prohibits knives, the point of which can be removed by pressing on the handle or lever. Nothing is said about the parameters of the knives sold by the Finki NKVD stores.

“The blade of a knife must be made of brittle metal so that they cannot kill a person. If the blade is fragile, then it will break, it will be impossible to kill it. It is also forbidden to manufacture and store push-button edged weapons, the blade of which appears when the button is pressed. So the Finns are on the free sale - a rather controversial issue, in any case it is necessary to obtain a license for this in a special division of the National Guard", - retired Major General of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Mansur Yusupov told Novye Izvestia.

“There are special requirements for melee weapons that are allowed to have and carry. Each such knife must be accompanied by a certificate stating that, in terms of its parameters and characteristics, this item is not a melee weapon", - retired FSB Major General Alexander Mikhailov confirmed.

We also turned for clarifications to the press service of the Office of the Federal Group of Forces of the National Guard of the Russian Federation for the Nizhny Novgorod Region . However, on the phone of the press secretary, senior lieutenant of the police Maria Borzheyeva, an answering machine talked to us for several days. We sent an official request for permission to manufacture, store and distribute the products of Finki NKVD stores. At the time of publication, the branch of the Russian Guard in the Nizhny Novgorod region did not send us a response. If he enters, we will certainly publish. At the same time, we turned to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia with a request to comment on the sale and such a wide and uncontrolled distribution of "NKVD finances".

It is worth noting that not every citizen of our country has the right to purchase and further use edged weapons. Owners must have a special permit for storing and carrying a specific type of weapon. When buying, the owner's permit document must contain a mark about such a purchase. It is not known whether the buyers of the NKVD Finns have such documents. Most likely - they do not, because anyone can order a product in an online store.

But the real trouble is that the symbolism of murderers and executioners in 21st century Russia carries almost no negative connotations and has essentially become a common commodity. If the Khimki police work under the guise of Yagoda, why don't the Nizhny Novgorod blacksmiths produce labels with NKVD symbolics?