Russia's Notorious 'Chessboard Killer' Has a Staggering Number of Victims. He Says There Are More

Yahoo

07-04-2025

1974–present
Russian serial killer Alexander Pichushkin, who is serving life in prison for killing 48 people, is poised to confess to additional murders. Pichushkin, also known as 'The Chessboard Killer,' targeted his victims, mostly the elderly and destitute, in Moscow's Bittevsky Park for more than a decade before his arrest in 2007. He earned his nickname after police discovered a chessboard in his apartment on which he had recorded his killings.
In a statement on April 5, Russia's penal service revealed that Pichushkin, now 50, is ready to confess to 11 more murders. During his trial, he claimed to have killed as many as 63 people but was only charged for 48 counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder. If convicted, Pichushkin, who is already considered Russia's second most prolific serial killer, would be held responsible for killing a total of 59 people. He is currently being held at Polar Owl prison, a remote penal colony located north of Russia's Arctic Circle.
Russian serial killer Alexander Pichushkin, nicknamed 'The Chessboard Killer,' is serving life in prison for murdering 48 people. He was caught in Moscow in 2007 after killing a coworker and has maintained he killed as many as 63 people. Following his arrest the police discovered a chessboard with dates on all but two of the squares, apparently connected to the murders he committed. Due to the gruesomeness and number of his murders, Russians considered reinstating the death penalty. However, Pichushkin has instead been jailed since his 2007 conviction, which also included three counts of attempted murder.
FULL NAME: Alexander Yuryevich PichushkinBORN: April 9, 1974BIRTHPLACE: Mytishchi, RussiaASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aries
Alexander Yuryevich Pichushkin was born on April 9, 1974, in Mytishchi, Russia, a city on the outskirts of Moscow. Little is known of Pichushkin's early years. He had some type of head injury around the age of 4 and spent time in an institute for the disabled as a child.
He appeared to be in competition with one of Russia's most well-known serial killers, Andrei Chikatilo, who was convicted of 52 murders in 1992. Around the time of Chikatilo's trial in 1992, Pichushkin committed his first murder. He was just a teenager when he pushed a boy out of a window, according to Pichushkin's televised confession. While the police did question him in the case, it was later declared a suicide. 'This first murder, it's like first love, it's unforgettable,' he later said.
Pichushkin's murderous impulses lay dormant for years until he began killing people in Moscow's Bittsevsky Park in the early 2000s. Often targeting the elderly or the destitute, he lured his victims to the park to reportedly drink with him at his dead dog's grave. There appears to be some kernel of truth to this story. After the loss of his grandfather, with whom he shared a close bond, Pichushkin became depressed. He got a dog that he often walked in the park. It is unknown whether the dog is actually buried there, however.
Pichushkin waited until his intended victim was intoxicated and then he hit him or her repeatedly with a blunt instrument, like a hammer or a piece of pipe. To conceal the bodies, he often threw his victims into a sewer pit. Some of them were still alive at the time and ended up drowning.
As the killings progressed, Pichushkin's attacks grew even more savage. He left a broken vodka bottle sticking out of some victims' skulls and seemed to care less about disposing of the bodies, just leaving them out in the open to be discovered. By 2003, Moscow residents, especially people who lived near the park, feared that there was a serial killer on the loose. Newspapers nicknamed Pichushkin the 'Bittsevsky Maniac' and 'The Bittsa Beast.'
Authorities finally caught up with Pichushkin in June 2006 after he killed a woman he worked with at a supermarket. She had left a note for her son to tell him that she was taking a walk with Pichushkin. While he was aware of the risks involved in killing his coworker, he still murdered her.
After his arrest, the police discovered a chessboard with dates on 61 or 62 of its 64 squares. Pichushkin was a fan of the game and had been trying to kill as many people as there were squares on the board. Despite the date references, the police were only able to charge Pichushkin with 48 counts of murder and 3 counts of attempted murder (three of his victims survived).
Pichushkin's confession was aired on Russian television. In it, he discussed at length his need to kill. 'For me, a life without murder is like a life without food for you,' Pichushkin reportedly said.
Showing no remorse, he later argued that he should be charged with more murders, keeping with his claim of killing 61 or 63 people (his story varied). 'I thought it would be unfair to forget about the other 11 people,' Pichushkin reportedly commented during his 2007 trial.
Pichushkin was convicted in October 2007. The jury deliberated for only three hours before finding him guilty of all 51 counts. Shortly after the trial, Pichushkin was sentenced to life in prison. The hideous nature of his crimes has renewed interest in reinstituting Russia's death penalty, but that has yet to happen.
In April 2025, Pichushkin revealed he wanted to confess to 11 additional murders.
This first murder, it's like first love, it's unforgettable
For me, a life without murder is like a life without food for you.
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