Sergei "Serge" Malatov (

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

: Сергій Малатов) is a fictional character on the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...

drama series ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime film, crime drama Television show, television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The ...

'', played by Chris Ashworth. He acts as a driver and enforcer for

The Greek The Greek is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Bill Raymond. The Greek is the head of an international criminal organization involved in narcotics and human trafficking. The Greek is a mysterious figure involved ...

. He is

, although Americans often assume he is

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n. He hates this and their subsequent tendency to nickname him "Boris". He is responsible for picking up containers of smuggled goods from the port and taking them to The Greek's front warehouse to be fenced.

Biography

Malatov is a trusted lieutenant in

's import business. He is said by White Mike to be "straight muscle." When vodka, appliances, electronics, drugs or

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

women destined to be sex workers arrive in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, Sergei ensures the cargo is delivered to The Greek's associates in the city. He mentions that he has spent four years in prison in Ukraine, and that American prisons are nowhere near as harsh.

Season two

Sergei is supposed to collect fourteen prostitutes hidden in a cargo container from the docks, but when he does not receive the all-clear signal from The Greek's accomplice on the ship which delivered the women, he abandons the container on the waterfront. The Greek later learns that the women were killed, and Sergei is sent to the Philadelphia port (the ship's next destination) to find the crewman. He infiltrates the port and captures the crewman. When The Greek and Spiros "Vondas" Vondopoulos arrive, the crewman tells them everything about how the women were killed, and Spiros murders him. Sergei is charged with disposing of the body and The Greek instructs him to make sure there is no face or fingerprints. The body is later found and identified by a tattoo. Sergei is friendly with drug kingpin

Proposition Joe Joseph Stewart, better known as "Proposition Joe" or "Prop Joe", is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by Robert F. Chew. Joe is an Eastside drug lord who prefers a peaceful solution to business disputes when possible. H ...

, who is supplied by The Greek. He intervenes on behalf of

Nick Sobotka Nickolas Andrew Sobotka is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Pablo Schreiber. Nick is the cousin of Ziggy Sobotka, the wayward and rebellious son of Nick's uncle Frank Sobotka. Plot details Season 2 Nick is a ...

— because The Greek needs Nick and his uncle Frank's help to smuggle containers off of cargo ships — when

Ziggy Sobotka Chester Karol "Ziggy" Sobotka is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor James Ransone. Though his father Frank Sobotka was a well-respected stevedore union leader, Ziggy's thoughtless and immature behavior gained h ...

gets into debt with Proposition Joe's nephew,

Cheese Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...

. He is ruthless in his work, and thorough in clean-up. When a drug dealer asks whether a recently found body was his handiwork, he retorts "Did he have hands? Did he have a face? Yes? Then it wasn't us. Idiot!" As most of the US population is not in police/federal DNA records (minus convicted felons, military, etc.), a body that has neither fingerprints, a recognizable appearance, or intact teeth is generally impossible to identify. When security camera footage of him abducting the crewman is discovered by a police detail investigating the deaths of the girls and smuggling on the docks, Sergei is persuaded to become an informer and turn on The Greek and Spiros, but The Greek has already escaped. After the events on season 2, Sergei was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole and sent to Jessup penitentiary to serve out his sentence.

Season five

Several years later, as rising kingpin

Marlo Stanfield Marlo Stanfield is a fictional character on the HBO television drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Jamie Hector. Stanfield is a young, ambitious, intelligent and ruthless gangster and head of the eponymous Stanfield Organization in the Baltimore ...

gets a line on Spiros "Vondas" Vondopoulos and the Greeks, he has

Chris Partlow Christopher "Chris" Partlow is a fictional character on the HBO drama ''The Wire'', played by actor Gbenga Akinnagbe. Chris is Marlo Stanfield's second-in-command and bodyguard in his drug dealing operation. He is a minor antagonist for season 3 ...

investigate the port investigation, as well as Sergei's criminal record at the courthouse. Upon learning that Sergei is locked up in Jessup, Marlo arranges a meeting with him. Initially, Marlo's access to Sergei is blocked by

Avon Barksdale Avon Randolph Barksdale is a fictional character in the American television series ''The Wire'', played by Wood Harris. Barksdale is one of the most powerful drug dealers in Baltimore, Maryland, and runs the Barksdale Organization. Stringer Bell, ...

, who is effectively running the criminal activities within the prison, but after Marlo makes a payment to Avon's sister, Avon grants Marlo access to Sergei. Sergei, despite receiving a great deal of money from Marlo, is disrespectful and states that he does not need Marlo's help or money. However, Marlo points out that Sergei can win back some favor with the Greeks if he gets a message to Vondas regarding Marlo's intentions to do business with them. Avon encourages Sergei to cooperate with Marlo, and Sergei, realizing that Marlo is right that he can claim some credit if the deal happens, agrees to get in touch with Vondas.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malatov, Sergei The Wire characters Fictional mass murderers Fictional career criminals Fictional Ukrainian people Television characters introduced in 2003 Fictional smugglers Drug dealers of The Wire Henchmen of The Wire Shipyard associates of The Wire Male characters in television