Former Russian track star, 35, sentenced to prison for theft and robbery

Mark Tolstikhin after being arrested by police on Feb. 4, 2025. Photo by Telegram/Shot

Tolstikhin, 35, has been wanted by Russian police for a long time. He was arrested on Feb. 4 after security cameras spotted him at a Moscow metro station. Nine days later, the Meshansky District Court handed down his prison sentence for both robbery and assault charges.

"He came to our store and asked about an iPhone. It took us quite a while to discuss its specifications," one victim told Sovsekretno. "Then he said: ‘I’ll buy it’. When I was handling the paperwork, he snatched the phone from my hand and ran."

Another victim recounted a similar scenario: "He pretended to book a nail appointment for his girlfriend named Alena, then suddenly grabbed my charging phone near the exit and ran away. I tried to chase him, but he was too fast."

Former coach Yuri Kukanov shed light on Tolstikhin’s fall from grace, attributing it to gambling debts that led to criminal acts. He often borrow money from friends and teammates but never paid them back.

In 2017, Tolstikhin was first convicted of robbery and assault. Two years later, he was arrested for stealing a phone, receiving only a community service sentence. Instead of complying, Tolstikhin fled, eventually landing on Russia’s federal wanted list.

Tolstikhin was born in Smolensk, a city in western Russia. He has won many national championships, as well as participated in European and world level competitions in cross-country and trail running.

His accolades included a silver medal at the 2007 European Junior Athletics Championships and a bronze at the European Junior Mountain Running Championships

Tolstikhin’s athletic ability, particularly his speed, often allowed him to escape easily. His running skills made it nearly impossible for victims to catch him.