Moscow , Russia ( CNN ) -- Ousted Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov presided over a `` pyramid '' of corruption in the Russian capital that the Kremlin tolerated for political advantage , according to a document released by the website WikiLeaks on Wednesday . Despite an anti-corruption campaign launched by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev , `` the extent of corruption in Moscow remains pervasive with Mayor Luzhkov at the top of the pyramid , '' according to a February cable from the U.S. Embassy there . `` Luzhkov oversees a system in which it appears that almost everyone at every level is involved in some form of corruption or criminal behavior . '' But for Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin , Luzhkov remained `` a trusted deliverer of votes and influence '' for their ruling party , United Russia . `` Putin and Medvedev 's dilemma is deciding when Luzhkov becomes a bigger liability than asset , '' the cable states . Luzhkov apparently reached that point in September , when Medvedev abruptly fired the 74-year-old Moscow mayor . His dismissal came after criticism in Russia 's state media that he had gone on vacation during a wave of forest fires that blanketed the capital in thick smog -- and after reports that he channeled funds and lucrative deals to his property-developer wife , now Russia 's richest woman . Luzhkov denied the allegations after his dismissal and told CNN that he was fired to enable the Kremlin to tighten its grip on power . He won a libel suit against an opposition leader who leveled allegations of corruption against the mayor , though the U.S. Embassy cable notes the judgment was issued on technical grounds . The U.S. document , dated more than seven months before Luzhkov 's dismissal , described a three-tiered `` kleptocracy . '' `` Criminal elements enjoy a 'krysha ' ( a term from the criminal/mafia world literally meaning 'roof ' or protection ) that runs through the police , the Federal Security Service ( FSB ) , Ministry of Internal Affairs ( MVD ) , and the prosecutor 's office , as well as throughout the Moscow city government bureaucracy , '' the document states . It added , `` Luzhkov is at the top . '' `` Moscow business owners understand that it is best to get protection from the MVD and FSB ( rather than organized crime groups ) since they not only have more guns , resources , and power than criminal groups , but they are also protected by the law , '' the cable continued . `` For this reason , protection from criminal gangs is no longer so high in demand . Police and MVD collect money from small businesses while the FSB collects from big businesses . '' In addition , according to one source quoted in the document , Luzhkov and other regional leaders were kicking payments up to the Kremlin . `` The governors collect money based on bribes , almost resembling a tax system , throughout their regions , '' the cable quotes that source , whose name was redacted .
A U.S. Embassy document describes Moscow as a `` kleptocracy '' Luzhkov was a political asset for Russia 's ruling party . Businesses prefer paying off cops over gangsters , the document states .