logo
Russia's 'chessboard killer' Alexander Pichushkin poised to confess to 11 more murders, officials say

Russia's 'chessboard killer' Alexander Pichushkin poised to confess to 11 more murders, officials say

Yahoo05-04-2025
A Russian serial killer jailed for life for killing 48 people has said he is ready to admit to 11 more murders, according to the country's prison service.
Alexander Pichushkin, now 50 years old, targeted his victims - many of them homeless, alcoholics or elderly - around Bitsevsky Park in Moscow.
His killing spree lasted from 1992 to 2006, and he was then tried and jailed in 2007.
Russian media nicknamed him the "chessboard killer" because he told detectives he had planned to place a coin on every square of a 64-square chessboard for each of his victims.
The serial killer has been detained in a remote prison in Russia's Arctic, the Polar Owl prison, since being sentenced.
He has long been suspected of killing more people than the 48 for whose murders he has already been convicted.
Now he has told investigators he is prepared to confess to 11 further killings of men and women, Russia's prison system said in a statement on the Telegram messenger app on Saturday.
During his previous trial, he claimed to have killed 63 people, but he was only charged with 48 murders and three attempted murders.
Should he be convicted of the 11 additional murders, he would become Russia's second most prolific serial killer on record.
Mikhail Popkov, a former policeman, was convicted of 78 murders.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

FBI never probed ‘confidential' talks between DNC, Clinton campaign George Soros group, bombshell intel files show
FBI never probed ‘confidential' talks between DNC, Clinton campaign George Soros group, bombshell intel files show

New York Post

time37 minutes ago

  • New York Post

FBI never probed ‘confidential' talks between DNC, Clinton campaign George Soros group, bombshell intel files show

WASHINGTON — Two high-ranking employees of liberal billionaire George Soros' Open Society Foundations held 'confidential conversations' with the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton's campaign team in 2016 to push the narrative of collusion between Russia and GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump, newly declassified intelligence files show. The documents revealed that Leonard Benardo and Jeffrey Goldstein — Open Society's regional director and senior policy adviser for Eurasia, respectively — held talks with then-DNC chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz in early 2016 about smearing Trump as well as distracting from the 'growing scandal' surround Clinton's 'possible corruption' as secretary of state. In a January 2016 memo, the Soros operatives discussed with Wasserman-Schultz the negative fallout from Clinton Foundation donors getting preferential access to Hillary and the 'timely deletion of relevant data from mail servers.' 8 The files revealed that Open Society member Leonard Benardo (above) and Jeffrey Goldstein held talks with then-DNC chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz in early 2016 about smearing Trump. Open Society Foundation The year before, the former secretary of state had nixed more than 30,000 emails from a private server. The FBI confirmed in a subsequent investigation that the messages included 'very sensitive, highly classified information,' but no charges were brought. According to another memo, this one from March 2016, then-President Barack Obama didn't want the controversy to 'darken the final part of his presidency' and apparently tried to pressure his attorney general, Loretta Lynch, to meddle in then-FBI Director James Comey's investigation of the Clinton emails. 'Barack Obama sanctioned the use of all administrative levers to remove possibly negative effects from the FBI investigation of cases related to the Clinton Foundation and the email correspondence in the State Department,' the memo declared. 8 The DNC saw the scandals' threat to Clinton's campaign as 'minimal' and worked on developing a two-pronged counter-attack 'focused on discrediting Trump through debates and propaganda activities.' Ron Sachs – CNP for NY Post As a result, the DNC saw the scandals' threat to Clinton's campaign as 'minimal' and worked on developing a two-pronged counter-attack 'focused on discrediting Trump through debates and propaganda activities' — with the help of 'special services.' Those included either the direct involvement of intelligence agencies or the use of a now-discredited dossier compiled by ex-MI6 spy Christopher Steele, alleging Russian leader Vladimir Putin had blackmail material on Trump. At the time, the files also disclosed, Lynch was communicating with Clinton campaign political director Amanda Renteria and the Democratic candidate was in the process of discussing a plan with adviser Julianne Smith that Benardo described as 'a long-term affair to demonize Putin and Trump.' 8 Jeff Goldstein appears to have died last year but had been based in Washington, DC, as the senior policy adviser for Eurasia at the organization. Getty Images 'HRC [Hillary Rodham Clinton] approved Julia's idea about Trump and Russian hackers hampering U.S. elections,' a bombshell July 27, 2016, email from Benardo laid bare the plot. 'That should distract people from her own missing emails. … The point is making the Russian play a U.S. domestic issue.' Benardo currently serves as senior vice president at Open Society Foundations, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Goldstein's current status is unclear 8 In a January 2016 memo, the Soros operatives discussed with Wasserman-Schultz the negative fallout from the 'timely deletion of relevant data from mail servers.' Bonnie Cash/UPI/Shutterstock The memos and other intelligence files were handed over to the Obama FBI, and bureau deputy director Andrew McCabe shared them with senior officials at the Department of Justice — but the information implicating Clinton in the Russiagate scandal was never fully investigated. Comey later told the Department of Justice's Office of Inspector General he didn't view the intelligence — which had been obtained by Russian hackers — as 'credible.' Former FBI General Counsel James Baker disagreed and told the DOJ OIG 'how personally bothered he was' by Lynch's interactions with Clinton's campaign, adding that 'he and other FBI executives had great concerns' about evidence in the memos implying Lynch would 'use her position to make sure that Hillary Clinton was not prosecuted.' 8 Special counsel John Durham unearthed the stunning disclosures as part of a multi-year investigation into intelligence efforts surrounding the 2016 election. Getty Images Special counsel John Durham unearthed the stunning disclosures as part of a multi-year investigation into intelligence efforts surrounding the 2016 election and maintained in his assessment that the 'Benardo emails were likely authentic.' When Durham interviewed Benardo, the Open Society employee said 'to the best of his recollection, he did not draft the emails.' 'The [Clinton] campaign might have wanted or expected the FBI or other agencies to aid that effort ('put more oil into the fire') by commencing a formal investigation of the DNC hack [by Russia],' Durham's annex noted. 8 Former FBI Director James Comey later told the Department of Justice's Office of Inspector General he didn't view the intelligence — which had been obtained by Russian hackers — as 'credible.' REUTERS 'The Office's best assessment is that the … emails that purport to be from Benardo were ultimately a composite of several emails that were obtained through Russian intelligence hacking of the U.S.-based Think Tanks, including the Open Society Foundations, the Carnegie Endowment, and others.' The CIA determined that the intelligence was also not 'the product of Russian fabrications' as early as 2017. The FBI received an investigative referral from the CIA related to the Clinton files after an Aug. 3, 2016, meeting at the White House at which Obama, Comey, then-CIA Director John Brennan, Vice President Joe Biden, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper were all present. 8 The memos and other intelligence files were handed over to the Obama FBI, and bureau deputy director Andrew McCabe shared them with senior officials at the Department of Justice. Getty Images The information implicating Trump was still 'disseminated through leading U.S. publications,' the intelligence files recounted, as part of 'the first stage of the campaign' by Clinton associates 'due to lack of direct evidence' of Trump's purported collusion with Russia. Attorney General Pam Bondi, CIA Director John Brennan and FBI Director Kash Patel approved the release of the files Thursday by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). 'Based on the Durham annex, the Obama FBI failed to adequately review and investigate intelligence reports showing the Clinton campaign may have been ginning up the fake Trump-Russia narrative for Clinton's political gain, which was ultimately done through the Steele Dossier and other means,' Grassley said in a statement. 8 Attorney General Pam Bondi, CIA Director John Brennan and FBI Director Kash Patel approved the release of the files Thursday by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). Ron Sachs – CNP for NY Post 'These intelligence reports and related records, whether true or false, were buried for years. History will show that the Obama and Biden administration's law enforcement and intelligence agencies were weaponized against President Trump,' he also said. 'This political weaponization has caused critical damage to our institutions and is one of the biggest political scandals and cover-ups in American history. The new Trump administration has a tremendous responsibility to the American people to fix the damage done and do so with maximum speed and transparency,. Reps for Clinton did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Declassified Durham Report Annex Shows ‘Weaponization' Against Trump: Grassley
Declassified Durham Report Annex Shows ‘Weaponization' Against Trump: Grassley

Epoch Times

time2 hours ago

  • Epoch Times

Declassified Durham Report Annex Shows ‘Weaponization' Against Trump: Grassley

A declassified report suggests that the Hillary Clinton campaign sought to falsely claim that then-Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump had ties with the Russian government, while the FBI failed to investigate the matter, according to the heads of the CIA, Justice Department, and a prominent Republican senator. The documents were part of an annex to former special counsel John Durham's 2023 report into the FBI's investigation into allegations of Trump campaign–Russia ties, and were released by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), who had received the files from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and CIA.

Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv kills at least 13 people and injures more than 130
Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv kills at least 13 people and injures more than 130

Los Angeles Times

time2 hours ago

  • Los Angeles Times

Russian missile and drone attack on Kyiv kills at least 13 people and injures more than 130

KYIV, Ukraine — Russian missile and drone attacks overnight on Ukraine's capital city killed at least 13 people, including a 6-year-old boy, and wounded 132 others, authorities said Thursday. A 5-month-old girl was among 14 children wounded, Ukraine's Emergency Service said. It was the highest number of children injured in a single attack on Kyiv since the start of Russia's invasion three years ago, according to public records consulted by The Associated Press. A large part of a nine-story residential building collapsed in the attack, City Military Administration head Tymur Tkachenko said. Rescue teams searched for people trapped under the rubble. Yana Zhabborova, 35, a resident of the damaged building, woke up to the sound of thundering explosions, which blew off the doors and windows of her home. 'It is just stress and shock that there is nothing left,' said Zhabborova, a mother of a 5-month-old infant and a 5-year-old child. Russia fired 309 Shahed and decoy drones, and eight Iskander-K cruise missiles overnight, the Ukrainian air force said. Ukrainian air defenses intercepted and jammed 288 strike drones and three missiles. Five missiles and 21 drones struck targets. Russian troops also struck a residential 5-story building in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk, according to the head of Donetsk regional military administration Vadym Filashkin. He said one person was killed and at least 11 more injured. At least 27 locations across Kyiv were hit by the attack, Tkachenko said, with the heaviest damage seen in the Solomianskyi and Sviatoshynskyi districts. More than 100 buildings were damaged in Kyiv, including homes, schools, kindergartens, medical facilities and universities, he said. Russia's Defense Ministry said Thursday that it had shot down 32 Ukrainian drones overnight. A drone attack had caused a fire at an industrial site in Russia's Penza region, local Gov. Oleg Melnichenko said. He didn't immediately give further details other than to say that there were no casualties. In the Volgograd region, some trains were also halted after drone wreckage fell on local railway infrastructure, state rail operator Russian Railways said. Russia's Defense Ministry also said that its forces took full control of the strategically important city of Chasiv Yar in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region. Russian and Ukrainian troops have battled for control of Chasiv Yar for nearly 18 months. It includes a hilltop from which troops can attack other key points in the region that form the backbone of Ukraine's eastern defenses. Victor Trehubov, a Ukrainian military spokesperson, denied Russia's claim. 'Just a fabrication, there wasn't even a change in the situation,' he told The Associated Press. A report on Thursday from Ukraine's Army General Staff said there were seven clashes in Chasiv Yar in the past 24 hours. An attached map showed most of the town as being under Russian control. DeepState, an open-source Ukrainian map widely used by the military and analysts, showed early Thursday that neighborhoods to the south and west of Chasiv Yar remained as so-called gray zones, or uncontrolled by either side. The attack targeted the Kyiv, Dnipro, Poltava, Sumy, Mykolaiv regions, with Ukraine's capital being the primary target, President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram. 'Today, the world once again saw Russia's answer to our desire for peace with America and Europe,' Zelensky said. 'New demonstrative killings. That is why peace without strength is impossible.' He called on Ukraine's allies to follow through on defense commitments and pressure Moscow toward real negotiations. President Trump said Tuesday that he's giving Russian President Vladimir Putin a shorter deadline — Aug. 8 — for peace efforts to make progress, or Washington will impose punitive sanctions and tariffs. Western leaders have accused Putin of dragging his feet in U.S.-led peace efforts in an attempt to capture more Ukrainian land. Kullab writes for the Associated Press. Vasilisa Stepanenko and Illia Novikov contributed to this report.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store