Zolotov was born in Sasovo in Ryazan Oblast into a working-class family and worked as a steelworker. In the 1990s he was hired as a bodyguard of the Mayor of Saint PetersburgAnatoly Sobchak. At this job he met Vladimir Putin, who was a Vice Mayor at this time. Zolotov became a sparring partner of the futurePresident of Russia in boxing and judo, and "whenever Putin appeared in public, Zolotov could be spotted walking directly behind him". Zolotov also served in Roman Tsepov's private guard service Baltik-Eskort, prior to the poisoning of Tsepov by an unknown radioactive substance. The agency was created in 1992, based on the advice from Zolotov, who allegedly oversaw this agency later as a member of the active reserve, according to Yuri Felshtinsky and Vladimir Pribylovsky. The firm provided protection to high ranking Saint Petersburg officials, including the city mayor Anatoly Sobchak and his family, as well as the vice-mayor Vladimir Putin. It also served as the central mechanism for the collection of tribute and chorniy nal or "black cash" for Putin's purposes. From 2000-2013, he was the Chief of the Security of Prime Minister of Russia and President of Russia Vladimir Putin commanding security officers that are known in Russia as "Men in Black" because they wore black sunglasses and dressed in all-black suits. They use a variety of weapons including portable rocket launchers. On 5 April 2016, V. Zolotov was appointed as commander-in-chief of the National Guard of Russia and relieved of his previous duties—and by a separate Presidential Decree was named a member of the Security Council. In April 2018, the United States imposed sanctions on him and 23 other Russian nationals. In August 2018, Zolotov became a figurant of the investigation of the Anti-Corruption Foundation. Alexei Navalny alleged a theft of at least $29m in procurement contracts for the National Guard of Russia. Soon Navalny was imprisoned, formally for staging protests in January 2018, and Viktor Zolotov published a video message on September 11, where he called Navalny into a duel and promised to make "good, juicy mincemeat" of him.
