Andrei Chikatilo

Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo (??????? ?????????? ?????????) (October 16, 1936–February 14, 1994) was a Soviet serial killer. He was convicted of the murder of fifty-two women and children between 1978 and 1990.

Murder spree

In 1978, he moved to Shakhty and committed his first documented murder. On December 22, 1978, he lured a nine-year-old girl to an old shed and attempted to rape her. When the girl struggled, Chikatilo stabbed her to death. He ejaculated in the process of knifing the child and from then on he was only able to achieve sexual arousal and orgasm through stabbing and slashing women and children to death. Despite evidence linking Chikatilo to this first killing, a young man, Alexsandr Kravchenko, was arrested and later tried and executed for the crime. Chikatilo lost his teaching job in 1981 and became a clerk at a local firm.

Related Topics:
1978 - December 22 - Rape - Orgasm - Executed - 1981

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He did not murder again until 1982, but in that year he killed seven times. He established a pattern of approaching runaways and young vagrants at bus or railway stations and enticing them to leave. A quick trip into a nearby forest was the scene for the victim's death. In 1983, he did not kill until June, but then he murdered four victims before September. The victims were all women and children. In the case of adult females, they were often prostitutes or homeless tramps who could be lured away with promises of alcohol or money. Chikatilo would usually attempt (consensual) intercourse with these victims, but would usually be unable to get an erection which would send him into a murderous fury, especially if the woman mocked his inability to perform. He would achieve orgasm only when he stabbed the victim to death. The child victims were of both genders, and Chikatilo would lure them away with his friendly, talkative manner and promising them treats, such as toys or candy. In the USSR at the time, reports of crimes like child rape and serial murder were often suppressed by the state-controlled media, as these crimes were regarded as only being common in "hedonistic capitalist nations". Consequently, with little knowledge of the increasing body count, parents failed to warn their children to be wary of strangers. As news of the savage killings leaked out during the 1980s, albeit with little official information about the details, wild rumours spread amongst the communities in Ukraine, such as the idea that foreigners were killing Soviet boys in preparation for an invasion, and even talk of werewolves.

Related Topics:
1982 - 1983 - Capitalist - 1980s - Ukraine - Werewolves

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Six bodies (out of fourteen) had been uncovered. This brought a response from the Moscow police. A team headed by Major Mikhail Fetisov was sent to Rostov to direct the investigation. Fetisov centred the investigations around Shakhty and assigned a specialist forensic analyst, Victor Burakov, to head the investigation in that area. The investigation concentrated on the mentally disturbed and known sexual criminals, slowly working through all that were known and eliminating them from the inquiry. A number of young men confessed to the murders, although they were usually mentally handicapped youths who had only admitted to the crimes under prolonged and often brutal interrogation. At least one suspect hanged himself in his cell whilst under arrest.

Related Topics:
Moscow - Rostov

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When boys began to make up a majority of the later victims, a frequent (and ineffective) ploy was to round up and interrogate homosexuals, the gay community being particularly clandestine in the USSR with homosexuality being illegal at the time. The police spread their search wider and wider. Over 150,000 people were interviewed and filed before this approach was abandoned. In 1984 another fifteen murders took place. The police took to additional patrols and sited plain-clothes men at many public transport stops.

Related Topics:
Homosexuals - 1984

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