Dimitri Rascalov

Dimitri Rascalov (Russian: Дмитрий Раскалoв) (1969 - 2008) is the main antagonist in Grand Theft Auto IV, and a major character throughout the game. He begins the game as the second-in-command of the Faustin Family, one of the premier Russian gangs in the city.

Biography
Dimitri is the best friend and second-in-command of Mikhail Faustin. The two met each other while serving in the Soviet Army during the Cold War, and eventually spent time in a Siberian prison together. The two were "closer than brothers", according to Mikhail; following the move to Liberty City, however, Mikhail became an alcoholic and cocaine addict, and no longer heeded Dimitri's advice. Dimitri himself developed an addiction to pain-killers.

Volatile and paranoid, Mikhail would have people killed on a whim or out of spite, and favored murder as the solution to most problems; Dimitri, by contrast, was more of a businessman, willing to use reason and non-lethal methods if such an approach would be more profitable. Dimitri warned Mikhail that their operation should keep a low profile and that they should "play by the rules", but Mikhail would not listen; his intemperance eventually led to war with the Petrovic Family, after Mikhail had Lenny Petrovic murdered on the mere suspicion of betrayal.

Dimitri cut a side deal with Kenny Petrovic to save his own life — in exchange for the murder of Mikhail, Dimitri would live, and continue the operation of the Faustin Family without interference from the Petrovics. Dimitri hired Niko Bellic to kill Mikhail — Petrovic allegedly requested that Niko kill Mikhail as atonement for his prior killing of Lenny.

With Mikhail dead, Dimitri took over the Faustin organization, and became partners with another powerful gangster, the European Ray Bulgarin. Once it was discovered that Bulgarin held a grudge against Niko, Dimitri lured the latter into an ambush; Niko escaped with the aid of his friend "Little" Jacob Hughes, but failed to kill Dimitri or Bulgarin -- both would continue to pursue Niko from then on.

Dimitri put out a contract on Niko and his cousin, Roman Bellic. Their apartment in Hove Beach was burned down, as was Roman's taxi depot; the two were forced to flee to Bohan to escape the attention of the Russian underworld. Dimitri would be seen again throughout the course of the story, at one point successfully finding and kidnapping Roman after his gambling habit lured him back to Broker. Niko mounted a successful rescue of Roman; he would next encounter Dimitri's deputies when the Russian Mafia attempted to extort deputy mayor Bryce Dawkins over his gay affair with Niko's friend Bernie Crane. Later, mob boss Jon Gravelli revealed that Dimitri had made an alliance with the Ancelotti Family, and was attempting to seize control of activities usually conducted by the Italian Mafia; he also spoke of Dimitri's involvement in cocaine imports, a matter of grave concern to U.L. Paper's anonymous representative.

Relationship with Mikhail Faustin
Dimitri and Mikhail Faustin have twin tattoos on the palms of their hands, meaning "brothers for life" according to Mikhail. Dimitri appears to have become "the brains" of the Russian operation, Mikhail's cocaine addiction having eroded his business sense; eventually Mikhail's rashness risks the lives of himself, Dimitri and Niko, and Dimitri conspires to kill him with Niko's help (see The Master and the Molotov). At the Perestroika cabaret club, Niko ambushes Mikhail, killing his entourage and confronting him on the roof; Mikhail warns that Dimitri is treacherous, and will betray Niko just as he has betrayed Mikhail; Niko ignores this and shoots Mikhail dead. Although Dimitri's motives were obvious here, Mikhail's prediction turns out to be true.

Death
Towards the conclusion of the story, Dimitri becomes involved in a heroin distribution ring with the Pegorino Family, for whom Niko is working at the time. Jimmy Pegorino asks Niko to be his representative; the player can choose to conduct the deal as Jimmy wishes, thus gaining a sizeable cash reward, or to ambush and kill Dimitri, taking revenge and ensuring the safety of Niko and Roman from further betrayal. If the player decides upon the Revenge path, Niko finds and kills Dimitri aboard the Platypus, the very ship which transported Niko to America.

If the player decides to do business with Dimitri, then Niko and Pegorino ally Phil Bell visit the drug warehouse which is the venue for the deal; Dimitri phones Niko, telling him that he is happy to work with the latter again, but that he has killed the people who were supposed to take part in the deal. Niko pledges to come after Dimitri later; he and Phil ambush the warehouse and steal the money. Later, at Roman's Wedding, Dimitri sends an assassin to kill Niko; when Niko struggles with him, the assassin accidentally shoots Roman dead instead. Outraged at his cousin's death, Niko and Little Jacob track Pegorino and Dimitri down to an abandoned casino; Niko then sees Dimitri kill Jimmy out of mere greed, betraying yet another business partner. Dimitri escapes in a helicopter; Niko and Jacob pursue him in an Annihilator, and both choppers crash on Happiness Island. Niko fights his way through the last of Dimitri's henchmen, and confronts him near the Statue of Happiness. Dimitri then succumbs to his injuries; his death is later announced on Weazel News.

Mission appearances

 * GTA IV
 * Crime and Punishment (Boss)
 * Do You Have Protection?
 * Final Destination
 * Rigged to Blow
 * The Master and the Molotov (Boss)
 * Russian Revolution (Boss, and betrayal)
 * If the Price is Right (Voice only)
 * A Revenger's Tragedy (Killed, Deal)
 * A Dish Served Cold (Killed, Revenge)

LCPD database record
Surname: Rascalov

First Name: Dimitri

Age: 39

Place of Birth: Russia

Affiliations:
 * Known associate of Mikhail Faustin.
 * Linked to Russian Organized Crime Syndicates throughout Liberty City.

Criminal Record:
 * 1998 - Extortion
 * 2000 - Hijacking

Notes:
 * Prior murder convictions in Russia.
 * Exploited a loophole in the immigration treaty to gain US residency in the mid 90s.
 * Believed to be the right hand man of Mikhail Faustin, the Russian national in control of organized crime in the Hove Beach area.
 * Reported dealings with Russian mobster Kenny Petrovic and members of the Ancelotti Crime Syndicate.

Trivia

 * During the game's final battle, Dimitri has 100 body armor as well as 200 health, allowing him to sustain about 3 times as much damage as a standard enemy. He is also armed with an Assault Rifle. This does not apply if he is confronted in the "A Dish Served Cold" mission in the "Revenge" story path, where he has normal health, no armor, and carries a Sub-Machine Gun.
 * Like many characters, Dimitri features distinctive models for cutscenes and in-game sequences. However, Dimitri's in-game model is inconsistent with that of the cutscenes in that his tie is fused with his shirt and textured to match its color, when cutscences depict his tie in pink and capable of swinging in motion. Despite these differences, the shape of the "fused" tie can still be seen on Dimitri's in-game model, particularly during "A Dish Served Cold". After Niko has executed Dimitri in this mission however, the tie does not appear on Dimitri's corpse. The frame of his glasses is also different: Black in cutscenes and yellow in-game.

Murders committed

 * James Pegorino (only in the "Deal" storyline)