Who Is Merchant Of Death? Who is known as the Merchant of Death?

The term was first applied to an arms dealer named Basil Zaharoff. Basil was a Greek arms dealer and industrialist. One of the richest men in the world during his lifetime

However, the term “merchant of death” has been given to mercenary arms traffickers in recent times, most notably the Russian gunrunner Viktor Bout, who allegedly delivered weapons to Colombian rebel groups as well as tyrants and rebels throughout much of South America, the Middle East, and Africa. Bout’s story also served as the idea for the film “Lord of War.”

Bout is currently doing time in a US prison after being convicted of 25 years in prison in New York in April 2012. Bout is serving 25 years in jail for, conspiring to kill US citizens and selling weapons to Colombia’s terrorist organisation, FARC.

According to Insider, Bout led an air-transport organization out of Belgium in the 1990s that allegedly included weapons and blood diamonds. The same insider stated that it was evident in intelligence circles that Bout had run his crime organisation with the protection of Russian security services for two decades.