From Russia with crime

A brutal murder in the Russian town of Korkino sparked one of the largest ethnic riots in recent years. After a 36-year-old taxi driver, Irina Safonova, was found stabbed to death, hundreds of residents stormed a local Roma settlement, setting homes and cars on fire. Two people were shot, dozens detained, and the town was left divided by fear, anger, and silence. This episode of From Russia with Fear uncovers the story behind the killing, the chaos that followed, and what it reveals about the growing social tension in small-town Russia.

In Kovrov, a 19-year-old mother starved her one-year-old son to death, then placed his body in a cardboard box and threw it into the trash. For weeks, no one noticed the child’s disappearance — not the neighbors, not the father, not even the grandmother. Investigators say Veronika Zhukova regularly abandoned her baby while she went out partying. Now she faces up to life in prison. A story of apathy, cruelty, and the complete collapse of family and social responsibility.

In Yekaterinburg, a 45-year-old repeat offender is accused of murdering his six-week-old grandson in a late-night rage. Neighbors called police as screams filled the hallway; the baby could not be saved. The suspect fled half-dressed, was found hours later, and now faces a psychiatric evaluation and charges for murdering a minor. A harrowing look at recidivism, untreated mental illness, and a system that reacts only after tragedy.

A knife rampage in Rostov-on-Don shocked an entire city. Twenty-six-year-old Vladislav Kuznetsov attacked people in apartment stairwells, leaving a teenage boy critically injured and killing 21-year-old student Ulyana Omelko with dozens of stab wounds. Neighbors who recognized him in viral videos helped police catch the suspect, a drug addict with a history of psychiatric treatment and debts. This episode explores the manhunt, the failures that let him roam free, and the questions now facing Russia’s justice system.

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we turn from crime scenes to catastrophe — though the system is still to blame. A burst pipe in freezing Magadan turned an ordinary apartment building into a boiling trap. Sleeping residents were scalded awake as superheated water filled the halls. Some jumped from windows to survive. One man burned his legs trying to escape. But this wasn’t just bad luck — it was the result of decades-old infrastructure, neglected by local officials who still haven’t shown their faces. 

A 28-year-old SVO veteran and former SOBR officer brutally murdered his ex-wife in front of witnesses—then signed a new military contract and returned to the front just one month later. In this episode, we tell the harrowing story of Evgeny Kramarenko, who stalked, beat, and stabbed his former partner, Anastasia, the mother of his two children. Despite confessing during a police reconstruction, Kramarenko escaped justice and was redeployed. How did this happen? What happens to the children left behind? And how many more crimes are committed by Russia’s so-called “heroes”? A chilling case of murder, impunity, and systemic failure.

In this shocking episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover the horrifying story of a ten-year-old boy in Smolensk who died at the hands of his own father. What first appeared to be a tragic apartment fire turned out to be a cover for unspeakable abuse. Forensic experts found multiple skull fractures, bruises, and even a severed finger — proof that the child was tortured before the flames consumed his home.

A single shot on a windy training ground is written up as “negligence.” Artyom Antonov’s family says it was an execution for refusing to sign a combat contract. In this episode, we reconstruct the killing of a 19-year-old conscript in Primorsky Krai, name the officer who pulled the trigger, and follow the paper trail of coercion—threats, forged signatures, and “administrative pressure”—that has pushed teenagers from barracks to the front. We also examine the Sakhalin case of Nikita Molochkovsky, declared dead after a contract experts say he never signed, and ask what accountability looks like when every witness is afraid to speak.

In this disturbing episode, we investigate the shocking assault of a 9-months-pregnant woman inside a shopping mall restroom in Kemerovo. 26-year-old Maria Krylova was brutally attacked by a janitor for walking across a freshly mopped floor. The janitor — 41-year-old Vera Khrebtova — punched, dragged, and humiliated the expectant mother, leaving her bloodied and traumatized. Surveillance footage captured the chilling indifference of nearby staff, while Khrebtova now claims self-defense. We break down the facts, examine the legal case, and speak about the broader implications. Stay with us. This is From Russia with Crime.

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we follow the shocking case of two entertainers murdered on the M4 Don highway in southern Russia. 37-year-old Kirill Chubko and 19-year-old Tatyana Mostyko vanished after their car broke down near the village of Berezanskaya. Days later, their bodies were found buried in the forest. Investigators say they were killed by a gang led by Demyan Kevorkyan — a repeat offender, once sentenced to 18 years for murder and robbery, later pardoned for his service in the war. Returning from the front decorated with a medal, Kevorkyan allegedly went back to crime, ordering the brutal stabbing of Kirill and Tatyana.

After serving three prison sentences, Sergey Asyapov joined the war and returned home to kill. He beat his girlfriend Kamila Nizamova to death, then tried to erase the evidence by scalding her body in boiling water. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we reveal how a violent repeat offender was freed for military service — and how even after murder, the Russian court took his side. A child lost his mother, a killer got leniency, and the front lines are still open to men like him.

A shopper is killed inside a Ramenskoye grocery after staff escort him to the back room over a 350‑ruble bottle of vodka. Investigators say the 32‑year‑old manager beat and strangled 49‑year‑old Timur Veselov; the case is now under the Investigative Committee’s supervision. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we piece together the final minutes from CCTV and ask why due process gave way to vigilante “justice” — and what the law actually requires when shoplifting is suspected.

A 12-year-old boy escapes months of torture by his mother and stepfather in Kemerovo—found shivering and starving in a supermarket storeroom, his face slashed and bones broken. As both adults land in pre-trial detention, we examine the medical evidence, the neighbors’ silence, and how a child who hadn’t seen a school or clinic in years slipped past every safeguard.

Residents of a Vladivostok high-rise say a neighbor who returned from the war is terrorizing their building—beating his partner and, a day later, ambushing the condo board chair outside his door. Security footage and medical reports document the assaults; rumors of “law-enforcement friends” only deepen the fear. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we unpack how a single man can hold an entire building hostage—and why neighbors felt they had to act before the police did.

A six-year-old boy was tortured, starved, and murdered by his foster parents in Yekaterinburg. His body was hidden in a garage, while his killers collected government benefits and staged a fake search. Convicted for child abuse, Alexander Naumov was released from prison after just two months — to join the war in Ukraine. In this episode, we uncover how a brutal child torturer became a soldier and ask: how many more criminals are being sent to the frontlines instead of prison?

In Mari El, a man stabbed his partner and two young children to death — just months after their newborn daughter had died under suspicious circumstances. Neighbors say he was a heavy drinker who turned violent when drunk. Now, investigators are also revisiting the earlier death of the baby. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover the full story behind the triple murder — and the chilling case in Irkutsk, where a man tried to burn his ex-wife and four children alive.

A nine-year-old boy terrorizes his neighbors in Krasnoyarsk, brutally beating an eight-year-old girl with an iron rod for not greeting him. In another shocking case, teenagers in Vladimir region nearly beat a pensioner to death with brass knuckles. Why is juvenile violence rising, and what’s behind this disturbing trend?

In Naberezhnye Chelny, a 33-year-old veteran of Russia’s war in Ukraine returns home — and unleashes terrifying violence on his own family. His grandmother, grandfather, and mother are left battered and broken, living in fear as police repeatedly release their attacker. We investigate why veterans like him often escape punishment, and how Russia’s laws are fueling a surge in violent crime.

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we share testimonies from troops ordered to cross minefields, charge open ground on motorcycles, and attack without weapons, food, or water. Some die within days. Others are left wounded and abandoned—forced to save themselves in unimaginable ways. Analysts say losses in these assaults can reach 2,000 men in a single day. For many soldiers, the most dangerous enemy isn’t across the battlefield—it’s behind them. Listen now.

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate a gang of fake taxi drivers from Azerbaijan who robbed at least seven people, stealing over 15 million rubles. From draining bank accounts to ordering expensive gadgets in their victims’ names, their scheme was as calculated as it was ruthless. We also look at another brutal case—a 17-year-old schoolboy in Chelyabinsk murdered by a group of migrants in a parking lot—and the alarming rise in migrant crime across Russia. Listen now.

Commanders demanding bribes. Soldiers beaten, threatened, and sent to die for refusing to pay. In this explosive episode of From Russia with Crime, we tell the story of Alexey, a father of four and contract soldier from Leningrad Oblast, who says his superiors extorted him, beat him, and threatened to send him on suicide missions for refusing to hand over money. He’s not alone—across Russia, soldiers are reporting similar abuse. Listen now.

He was a businessman with a collapsing empire, drowning in gambling debts and secret loans taken out in his wife’s name. When the truth came out, he didn't just lose everything—he took everything. In this devastating episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover the story behind Nikolai Bulankin, who murdered his pregnant wife and one-and-a-half-year-old daughter with a meat cleaver, then tried to take his own life. A tragic end to a life built on lies. Listen now.

He was a successful businessman, a loving husband, and a devoted father—until one night he murdered his one-and-a-half-year-old daughter and his wife with a meat cleaver. In this harrowing episode of From Russia with Crime, we tell the story of Nikolai Bulankin, a man who seemed to have it all—until he snapped. What drove him to commit such a monstrous act? Was it a hidden mental illness, a sudden breakdown, or something far more terrifying? 

Two convicted murderers raped and killed a 19-year-old student in Novosibirsk—and were sentenced to decades behind bars. But instead of serving their time, they signed contracts with Russia’s Ministry of Defense and walked free. In this shocking episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate how Sergey Yulin and Maksim Ovchinnikov escaped justice by going to war in Ukraine. One bought an apartment. The other was released on the anniversary of his victim’s death. While Kristina Prikhodko’s family is left mourning, her killers enjoy freedom, money, and a second chance.

In this chilling episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover the horrifying story of a Russian university teacher who was gang-raped by North Korean soldiers stationed in Kursk Oblast. Sent on a language mission to help these troops adapt, she became the victim of unspeakable violence—and now faces silence and denial from the Russian authorities. Why are her attackers likely to walk free? What role does geopolitics play in covering up crimes like this? And how has Russia’s war led to a surge in violent offenses across the country?

In this heartbreaking episode of From Russia with Crime, we step away from violence with weapons — and into violence by neglect. A single mother of three in Tula Oblast ends her life, leaving behind a chilling note: she could no longer feed her children, and no help was coming. Her story is not unique. As food prices in Russia skyrocket and millions fall below the poverty line, even basic survival becomes impossible. Why are mothers burying themselves before burying their children? Why is the state funding war instead of feeding its own people? And why do the official numbers tell a different story from what's happening on the ground?

In this shocking episode of From Russia with Crime, we tell the story of Irina Shatova, a mother from Perm who murdered her 9-year-old son—then packed his body into a suitcase and dumped it near a garbage bin. Now, she’s applying to join the war in Ukraine—and under new Russian law, that could let her avoid prison altogether. This is the story of a crime… and a country where even child murder can be forgiven—if you're willing to kill for the state.

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate a chilling case from Kingisepp, Russia, where three schoolboys — aged just 10 and 11 — were named suspects in a criminal case for "rehabilitating Nazism" after they accidentally extinguished an Eternal Flame while playing with snow. What happens when childhood play becomes a federal crime? Listen to find out.

In October 2024, Maksim Fedorchenko—a convicted felon with a history of mental illness—was sent to the frontlines in Ukraine as part of Russia’s assault units. Instead of fighting the enemy, he murdered 11 of his own comrades in cold blood. He threw a grenade into a bunker, then opened fire on the survivors. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover the shocking details of Fedorchenko’s past—schizophrenia, alcohol abuse, domestic violence—and ask how a man like this got a weapon and a uniform. We examine the Russian military’s disturbing pattern of recruiting violent criminals and the deadly consequences that follow.

Delve into a wild story where revenge becomes a new crime. In Omsk, a drunken group of teenagers raped a girl using a bottle and other objects. Upon learning of this, her acquaintance, Sergey Dege, decided to restore justice himself, committing a retaliatory act of violence. Ultimately, the court saw no nobility in his actions. Listen as we explore how the law evaluated the "avenging lover's" actions and what awaits him and his victim-turned-assailant in prison.

In this chilling episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate a horrifying double murder that shook Moscow in 2024. A respected Central Bank employee, Alexander Lipatov, suddenly suffered a psychotic break. He threw his two-year-old son and wife out the window of their 16th-floor apartment — in full view of stunned neighbors. What caused this respected man to snap? Was it burnout, untreated schizophrenia, or something else entirely? We walk you through the events of that morning, the discovery of disturbing drawings and pills, and Lipatov’s shocking explanation: he believed his family were demons. And just when you think it can’t get worse — he asks to be sent to war.

Delve into the depraved mind of Mikhail Safonov, who confessed to stabbing his girlfriend, dismembering her, and using acid to dispose of her body. From Russia with Crime explores the chilling details of this crime and the disturbing revelation that the "St. Petersburg dismemberer" was seemingly allowed to go to the SVO instead of facing immediate justice. 

Delve into a deeply disturbing case where a community's pleas went unheard, resulting in tragedy. From Russia with Crime explores the story of a 9-year-old girl killed by a well-known pack of dogs in Stavropol. This episode examines the negligence of the dogs' owner, the chilling surveillance footage of the attack, and the fear that still grips the neighborhood.

A village feud ends in horror. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate the brutal murder of Gulnaz Valeeva — a 46-year-old teacher abducted, tortured, and killed by a local official and a deputy in the Ural region of Russia. The suspects? Her former school bully, now the head of the village, and his political ally. What began as a childhood grudge exploded into a terrifying act of vengeance, carried out in the woods with a shovel. We uncover the years of threats, ignored complaints, and the shocking complicity of power.

Prepare for a heartbreaking and infuriating listen. From Russia with Crime uncovers the tragic reality of children falling victim to SVO veterans, including a two-year-old girl brutally raped and murdered by a pardoned ex-convict. This episode explores how current laws seemingly allow those who fight to evade full justice for heinous crimes, leaving families to fear future revenge.

Prepare for a harrowing account as From Russia with Crime details the recent attack by Anatoly Brovkin, a notorious, elderly pedophile who spent 45 years in prison yet returned to target a child just days after his release. This episode highlights the immense trauma inflicted on his victims and raises serious questions about the ongoing public safety risks posed by such offenders.

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we tell the true story of Kirill Cheplygin from Krasnoyarsk Krai. Caught on camera, Cheplygin stabbed his estranged wife Ekaterina and her new partner in the courtyard of their apartment building, while neighbors watched in silence. Yet just days after his arrest, he secured permission to join Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine instead of facing a 20-year sentence. We share how this crime shattered two families, and why Ekaterina’s mother now lives in fear — not just for justice, but for the safety of her five-year-old granddaughter. 

In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we tell the chilling true story of Alexander Katin, a 54-year-old man from Nizhnevartovsk who stabbed his long-time mistress, Natalia Dracheva, in front of witnesses and surveillance cameras. What began as a secret affair ended with blood on the pavement and a family destroyed. But instead of serving his 13-year sentence, Katin signed up for the war in Ukraine, joining the growing number of violent criminals Russia sends to the front.

Delve into a story of unimaginable cruelty and a disturbing loophole in justice. From Russia with Crime investigates the case of Igor Zykov, who committed an act of extreme violence against a teenage girl, culminating in her death by farm animals. Discover how this perpetrator, despite facing severe charges, allegedly went to the SVO, leaving the victim's family to grapple with profound loss and a shocking lack of accountability.

This episode of From Russia with Crime uncovers a harrowing case of maternal brutality in Armavir, where a mother, allegedly intoxicated, stabbed her five-year-old son and then attempted to conceal the attack. We explore the disturbing details, the child's desperate fight for survival, and the shocking inaction of those who might have intervened.

Three women tried to end toxic relationships. Their partners—all veterans of Russia’s war in Ukraine—refused to let them go. In today’s episode of From Russia with Crime, we follow the brutal murder of 23-year-old Darya Luzina in Perm, stabbed by her ex-boyfriend after she left him. We also investigate two other veterans—Rustam Altyrev and Ivan Bondar—who returned from war only to kill again.

Explore a deeply disturbing story from Russia where a teenage schoolgirl's secret pregnancy ended in unimaginable tragedy, as she gave birth and then disposed of her infant in a garbage chute. From Russia with Crime examines the community's reaction, the investigation, and the devastating consequences of this desperate act.

When a divorce threatened to split a fortune worth half a billion rubles, 70-year-old Galina Timonina made a chilling decision — kill her husband instead. In this episode of From Russia with Crime, we dive into the calculated murder plot of a wealthy Moscow socialite who offered 5 million rubles to have her husband, a high-ranking gas company executive, quietly poisoned. She thought she'd become a rich widow. Instead, she ended up behind bars. Greed, betrayal, and deception — all in today’s shocking story.

In this shocking episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover the disturbing story of Sanan Guseynov — a man who shot his ex-wife twelve times in cold blood, only to avoid prison by volunteering for Russia's war in Ukraine. But this isn’t an isolated case. We also expose how other violent offenders — including a convicted pedophile and a repeat rapist — are being funneled from police custody to the battlefield. In a system where murder is forgiven for military service, what future awaits Russian society?

A brutal double murder unfolds in the snow-covered courtyard of a quiet Siberian town. When 36-year-old Kirill Cheplygin sees his estranged wife with a new man, jealousy turns into cold-blooded violence. As neighbors watch in silence, he stabs both victims to death in broad daylight. What made a once-loving father become a killer? And why did no one help?

Prepare for a heartbreaking listen as From Russia with Crime exposes the unimaginable suffering of Anya, a teenage girl who, after a minor infraction, faced a year of relentless abuse and sexual assault in a Russian SIZO. Her mother's desperate fight for justice against an unyielding system reveals a shocking lack of accountability.

A woman pleads for her life — but her partner, a Special Military Operation veteran, shoves her from the 8th floor. In today’s episode, we expose how returned Russian soldiers turn their trauma into terror at home. From New Moscow to Vologda, women and children are paying the ultimate price. Two cases. Two dead partners. And a system that looks away.

When former Samara mayor Viktor Tarkhov and his wife suddenly vanished before New Year’s Eve, no one expected their own granddaughter would be behind it. In this chilling episode of From Russia with Crime, we uncover how 29-year-old Ekaterina Belskaya allegedly murdered, dismembered, and stored the bodies of her grandparents — all to sell off their luxury properties and belongings worth over $1.5 million.

In this harrowing episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate a chilling case from Kaliningrad Oblast where a seven-year-old boy was beaten to death by his stepfather — while his own mother stood by in silence. Together, the couple staged a heartless charade, reporting the child as missing and even participating in the search alongside police and volunteers. This episode explores not only the crime, but the disturbing reality of a society where appearances mask abuse, and justice comes too late.

In this explosive episode of From Russia with Crime, we investigate the shocking assassination of Armen Sargsyan — known in the Donbas underworld as Arman from Horlivka — who was killed in a high-profile bombing inside one of Moscow’s most elite residential complexes, "Alye Parusa." Once a commander of the Arbat special forces battalion and president of the DNR Boxing Federation, Sargsyan had a long history of alleged war crimes, organized violence, and deep ties to prison networks. As investigators search for answers, we unpack the tangled web of motives: from cigarette smuggling wars to possible Ukrainian retaliation. Was it a business feud gone deadly — or a targeted killing by foreign agents? And how could a suicide bomber bypass top-level security in a fortress-like building?