BEWARE OF SPOILERS. Due to the nature of the show, with its many Walking Spoiler characters, twists, and turns, the only spoilers whited out are those for the current season "24: Live Another Day". Proceed with caution!
Vladimir Bierko
A Russian businessman who financed and led the Dawn Brigade, a group of Russian separatists inside Central Asia. His homeland had been occupied by Russia for over 200 years, but Bierko and his followers wished to be free of Russian rule once and for all.
Bierko and some of his most skilled lieutenants—including Anton Beresch, Ivan Erwich, Ostroff, Mikhail and his technician—infiltrated the United States with a large number of loyal separatists to complete a deal to purchase Sentox nerve gas from corrupt American officials. When Erwich uncovered the American conspiracy against the Dawn Brigade, Bierko struck back and attacked numerous US targets throughout Day 5.
Tropes
- Back for the Finale: Close to it, at least. After getting incapacitated roughly two-thirds of the way into Day 5, he comes back to wreak havoc in episode 21, and doesn't get taken out until the season's penultimate episode.
- Big Bad Ensemble: With President Logan and Christopher Henderson. While he was supplied by them, Bierko becomes a threat by himself against the US.
- The Chessmaster: He is the head of the Dawn Brigade, having the money and the contacts to sustain rhe operation, and being the main planner.
- Climax Boss: He provides the climatic challenge for Day 5.
- Disc-One Final Boss: Subverted, somewhat. While he serves as a Big Bad throughout the middle third of Day 5 and is supplanted as Jack's nemesis by Charles Logan, he ends up returning with a vengeance in the last 4 episodes of the season, forcing Jack and Christopher Henderson to engage in an Enemy Mine alliance.
- Faux Affably Evil: He acts like a gentleman at first, but when things don't go his way, he shows his true psychopathic character.
- The Heavy: With Christopher Henderson during Day 5. They are both taken out with minutes of difference, leaving Logan as the final villain.
- Knight Templar: He is willing to do anything to make Russia suffer.
- Motive Decay: His original plan was to attack Moscow, but after the conspiracy's betrayal, and being unable to kill Suvarov or smuggle the sentox, he decides to kill as many US citizens as possible.
- Neck Snap: Jack snaps his neck with his legs.
- Not Even Bothering with the Accent: British actor Julian Sands continued to use his regular accent playing Bierko.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: Done twice. When he gasses CTU, and when he escapes in the last chapters to wreck havoc again.
- Pragmatic Villain: He starts off as this, killing Erwich for wasting a canister, and prefering to negotiate with Logan for Suvarov's life instead of killing US citizens, but when he feels betrayed by Logan, and cannot kill Suvarov, he settles for doing as much dage as possible to the US.
- Sharp-Dressed Man: He's always clad in a sharp suit.
- White Hair, Black Heart
- Underestimating Badassery: Him, and all his group, by the US conspirators.
- You Have Failed Me: He kills his Dragon, Ivan Erwich, for trusting the Americans and wasting one of the nerve gas canisters on America... Which he then did himself a few episodes later.
- Xanatos Speed Chess: He is constantly being forced to change his plans and improvise during Day 5. First, when he findd out he was betrayed and cannot smuggle the canisters out of US, he orders them brought to him (not before Erwich uses one as a demostration). Then, he tries to get Suvarov killed by getting the route of his caravan from Logan. When that fails, he turns to attack US, and cripples CTU in the process. And when his main target fails, and he is captured, he frees himself and launches a new attack with a remaining sentox canister.
Ivan Erwich
Dawn Brigade separatist working for Vladimir Bierko. He was responsible for smuggling canisters of Sentox VX nerve gas out of a hangar from the Ontario Airport.
Tropes
- The Dragon: For Vladimir Bierko.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He has a family that he loves and misses."My wife is in prison. She's been there for seven years. Her only crime was to support me while I fought for my country. My son lives in a state-run facility. He does not even remember what I look like. You want to know what this is about? It's about justice. It's about ending tyranny."
- I Lied: He kills the technician who opened the sentox canisters after promising he would let him live.
- Knight Templar: Erwich believes entirely in the cause and is fully dedicated to it.
- Person with the Clothing: He's referred to mostly as the man with the yellow tie until CTU learns his name.
- Well-Intentioned Extremist: Erwich's cause is reasonable enough.
- You Have Failed Me: He's a victim of this from Vladimir Bierko.
Anton Beresch
A Dawn Brigade separatist commander and the leader of the team that James Nathanson assembled to take over Ontario Airport. This was done to cover the transport of the Sentox canisters out of the airport.
Beresch worked with Nathanson and Ivan Erwich in obtaining the canisters of stolen Sentox VX nerve gas, that Vladimir Bierko would later use to strike against the US government.
Tropes
- Bald of Evil: He's bald and evil.
- Driven to Suicide: When his plan goes awry, Beresch first tries to shoot himself, and after Jack shoots his gun out of his hand, he instead blows himself up with a suicide vest.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Anton has a wife, it seems.Hostage: Please.... don't kill me. I have a wife.Beresch: (engages the hammer of his gun) So do I.
- Knight Templar: He's completely willing to die for his cause.
- Villainous Valor: While he shows little-to-no sympathy towards two men he executes on-camera, he tries to reassure the much younger Derek Huxley when he gets dragged out for his turn, and actually apologizes to Derek before going to shoot him (albeit the execution is interrupted when Jack remotely triggers the suicide vest of one of Beresch's men).
Ostroff
A Dawn Brigade separatist work for Vladimir Bierko. He's responsible for an attack on CTU, releasing a canister of Sentox VX nerve gas into the building and killing over 40% of the staff.
Tropes
- The Brute: He's a top enforcer for Bierko, carrying out attacks on both President Suvarov's Motorcade and CTU.
- Knight Templar: A loyal soldier for Bierko's cause, and one of the most efficient members.
- Pyrrhic Victory: He's killed by Jack, but successfully accomplishes his goal of releasing a canister of the Sentox gas into CTU prior to his death, which leads to CTU being crippled for the next several hours and results in several casualties, including Edgar and Lynn.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Shoots both Jenny McGill and her boyfriend in the head after obtaining a stolen CTU keycard from them.
Associates
Colette Stenger
A Russian information broker hired by Vladimir Bierko. She got immunity for giving up Bierko's target but the deal was void because she was withholding information.
Tropes
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: She might be a criminal, but she was genuinely upset to learn the truth about Theo Stoller, who she'd come to love.
- Knowledge Broker: Her profession.
- Ms. Fanservice: She's half naked first time she is seen.
- Properly Paranoid: She's very security conscious. Ironic that her boyfriend's a spy.
Jacob Rossler
A software programmer called in by Russian separatist Sergei Voronov to assist in the release of Sentox VX nerve gas during Day 5. Rossler was hired to give Ivan Erwich the specifications to get into the canisters and a new chip to detonate them. He was a sympathizer, if not a member, of the Dawn Brigade terrorist group operating in the US.
Tropes
- Dirty Old Man: He's elderly and keeps a 15-year-old girl as a sex slave.
- Karmic Death: The teenager he'd brought as a sex slave and frequently abused shoots him in the chest, killing him. On top of that, this is the direct result of his demanding that his immunity deal include being allowed to keep possession of her (though based on what happens to Jack when impersonating Rossler, Erwich would likely have pulled a You Have Outlived Your Usefulness on him anyway).
