Gleb Bokii

Who was Gleb Bokii?

Gleb Ivanovich Bokii was an ethnic Ukrainian Communist political activist and revolutionary in the Russian Empire. Following the October Revolution of 1917, Bokii became a leading member of the Cheka, the Soviet secret police. From 1921 through 1934, Bokii was the head of the so-called "special department" of the Soviet secret police apparatus, believed to have been in charge of the Soviet Union's concentration camp system. He remained a top level functionary in the secret police apparatus until his sudden arrest in May 1937 as part of the Great Terror. Following an extended investigation, Bokii was given a summary trial and executed in November of that same year. In 1956, Bokii was posthumously rehabilitated by Soviet authorities.