Lefortovo Prison It was built in 1881 and located in the Lefortovo District of Moscow, which it took its name from Franz Lefort, a close associate of Tsar Peter I the Great. During the Great Purge, Lefortovo prison was used by NKVD for interrogations with torture. Lefortovo was an infamous KGB prison and investigative isolator in the Soviet Union for detainment of political prisoners.