Russia's most prolific serial killers
Russia is the largest country in the world by land area — with a high crime rate to match. While some sources claim that violent crime has actually fallen since the early 2000s, others are more sceptical. For instance, rape and domestic abuse often go unreported in rural areas thanks to rampant misogyny.
It is also a supply, transit and destination country for human trafficking. Women are often sold into prostitution, while men are forced to work in dangerous industries. In 2023, the Organised Crime Index even claimed that children from occupied areas of Ukraine were being kidnapped as slaves.
Russia has the third highest number of documented serial killers in the world, after the USA and the UK. In this article, the team at Crime+Investigation examine some of the worst.
Olga Briscorn - 128 victims
Olga Briscorn, otherwise known as the Kursk Saltychikha, is the most notorious serial killer in Russia, with 128 confirmed victims. Even more unusual than the murder count is that the Russian landowner and socialite was a woman.
Between 1818 and 1822, Briscorn operated a factory where she tortured and starved her serfs. These 'bonded peasants' essentially belonged to Briscorn and were forced to work backbreaking 15-hour days. Disobedience was punished harshly with whips, bats and sticks.
Over the years, 128 people died of starvation, disease and injury. Tragically, 44 were under the age of 15.
Mikhail Popkov - 86 victims
Mikhail Popkov was supposed to be someone you could trust. However, the former security guard and police officer became one of the country's most sinister serial killers. Spanning almost two decades, the Angarsk Maniac murdered 86 women between the ages of 19 and 50.
His crimes were particularly barbaric. He would lure women into his car using his police uniform, drive them to a secluded area, murder them with knives, axes, baseball bats and screwdrivers and rape their bodies. His motive? He 'wanted to cleanse the streets of prostitutes'.
Andrei Chikatilo - 52 victims
Andrei Chikatilo had many monikers: the Butcher of Rostov, the Rostov Ripper and the Red Ripper, each capturing the barbarity of his crimes. The Ukrainian-born Soviet sexually assaulted, murdered and mutilated at least 52 women and children, but possibly more than 56.
His hatred of women began at an early age. His mother was driven to cruelty by poverty and sexual abuse, often berating her son for minor indiscretions. Moreover, Chikatilo became a laughing stock when his peers discovered he was impotent.
Sexual frustration fuelled his killing sprees. He claimed he could only achieve arousal through stabbing women and children to death.
Alexander Pichushkin - 49 victims
Alexander Pichuskin, also known as the Chessboard Killer, is known to have murdered at least 49 people between 1992 and 2006. However, the police believe the actual number could be closer to 60.
He wasn't a violent child, but this all changed when an accident damaged his frontal cortex. Subsequently, he became volatile and was eventually sent to a school for children with learning disabilities.
His motive for murder? He wanted to feel powerful. He would ambush his victims randomly with a hammer and vodka bottle from behind — the modus operandi of a true coward. He later told reporters, 'For me, life without murder is like life without food'.
Vasili Komaroff - 33 victims
Vasili Komaroff is one of the earliest known serial killers in the Soviet Union, murdering 33 people between 1921 and 1923. Life in wartime Russia was exceptionally hard, and the horse trader began drinking as a teen to cope. He was prone to violent outbursts, regularly beating his wife, children and customers.
His killings followed a similar pattern. He would meet a client, ply them with alcohol and murder them with a hammer or knife, before throwing their body into the Moscow River. When Komaroff's wife found out, she became a willing participant.
The two were executed by firing squad on 18th June 1923.
Radik Tagirov - 31 victims
You would never have heard of Radik Tagirov if he hadn't murdered 31 elderly women between 2011 and 2012. Nothing about him was remotely interesting, and he lacked the brains and personality for excellence.
Known for petty theft and robbery, his crimes soon escalated when he became transient. He would break into vulnerable women's homes, assault them and steal their money and belongings.
He was eventually caught when police identified him on CCTV outside a victim’s home.
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