Cherkizovsky Market

The Cherkizovsky Market, also known as Cherkizon was Europe's largest marketplace, located in Izmaylovo District, Moscow, Russia, near the Lokomotiv Stadium and Cherkizovskaya Moscow Metro station. It was owned by Telman Ismailov's AST Group. In its heyday the market employed an estimated 100,000 workers, mostly Asian immigrants. Moscow city authorities closed it down on June 29, 2009 on grounds of numerous violations of regulations and illegal activities. In July, 2009, Moscow authorities confirmed that the market was to be replaced with a Chinatown.HistoryThe market was founded in the early 1990s. With an area around 300 hectares, it was the largest market in Russia, and one of the largest in Europe. Thousands of migrants from China and Central Asia worked and lived there, many illegally. However, Moscow city authorities, in an effort to curb the spread of counterfeit goods and protect Sino-Russian trade, declared their intention to shut down the market several times since 1999.On August 21, 2006, a blast hit the marketplace, killing 14. The bombing was carried out by members of the Russian radical nationalist group Spas. Eight group members were later found guilty of the attack along with some other bombings carried out by the Moscow city court in May 2008, and given prison sentences ranging from 2 years to life imprisonment.

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