1. Andrei Chikatilo- the Rostov Ripper
By Jennifer Carr

2. What makes a Serial Killer?
Unusual motivation for acts that differ from the rest of society
Abusive childhood
Sexual/physical inadequacies
Personality that is either very introverted or very demanding
Often very well educated with a high IQ
Many times do not think what they’re doing is “evil”
They may know it’s wrong, but they keep doing it anyway

3. Family
Father drafted to serve against the Germans in WWII (Roman), then was branded a traitor by their neighbors after being released by the American forces
Mother a controlling, demining shrew (Anna)
Older brother Stepan who was apparently kidnapped and cannibalized by starving neighbors when he was 10 during one of the many famines when Stalin started the crop seizures and redistributions (no record of Stepan or his death actual exists)
Younger sister Tatyana

4. Early life Born on October 16, 1936 in Ukraine
Was born with a misshapen head due to water buildup in his brain
Due to an illness he contracted in childhood, Andrei suffered from chronic bedwetting, for which his mother would berate and abuse him for
The disease also made him impotent, though he was able to sire 2 children

5. Personality Extremely introverted
Instead of gaining social connections with other people, he would descend into violent and sexual fantasies
Was teased extensively about his impotency
Was a very smart, if shy person

6. Schooling Applied to Moscow State University in 1953
Passed the entrance exam but his school history was not good enough to gain him admission
Performed his compulsory military service from
Became a teacher of Russian Literature with a degree and taught at several schools until he was accused of molesting several students of both genders

7. Marriage and children
Married a woman introduced to him by his younger sister
He was unable to perform normal intercourse
Would ejaculate outside and push the sperm in manually
By this method he sired two children
Ludmila, in 1965
Yuri, in 1969
His wife would also berate him on his impotency, just like his mother

8. First signs of the Killer to be
Andrei first ejaculated was at 17
Happened while chasing down one of his sister’s 11 year old friends during a game
After he tackled her and she was fighting underneath him, the violence gave him a weak ejaculation, but with no erection
From then on, he associated violence with sexual pleasure
Derived pleasure form watching the bombing on his town from the war and the devastation it caused

9. First Kill Yelena Zakonova- 22 December, 1978
9 years old
Had secretly rented out a shack near Rostov-on-Don
Attempted to rape her, but when he could not get an erection, he proceeded to choke and stab her
It was during the stabbing that he managed to ejaculate, but again, with no arousal or erection
Dumped her body into a nearby river
Would go on to kill between victims

10. Notable Murders, in order
Yelena Zakonova-9 (F) December 22, 1978
First Murder
Oleg Pozhidayev-9 (M) August 13, 1982
First ever male victim
Body was never recovered
Laura Sarkisyan-15 (F)
While no direct date of death was clearly determined, Russian authorities could tell she’d been killed sometime after June 18, 1983
Her body was never found

11. Notable Murders (cont.)
Unknown Female victim (18-25 years old) Summer 1983
Was most likely a prostitute who thought Chikatilo was a potential client
Natalya Shalapinina-19 (F) January 19, 1984
Friend of the 9th victim, Olga Kuprina
Marta Ryabenko-45 (F) February 21, 1984
Chikatilo’s oldest victim

12. Notable Murders (cont.)
Tatyana Petrosyan-32 (F) and Svetlana Petrosyan-11 (F); Mother and daughter
Killed May 25, 1984
First time two murders were committed at the same time or of two relatives
Unknown woman (20-25 years old)
Was killed sometime between 8th-11th of August, 1984
Irina Gulyayeva-18 (F) August 27, 1985
Body was found day after Chikatilo murdered her
Fastest any of the victims had ever been found

13. Notable Murders (cont.)
Yuri Tereshonok-16 (M) September 15, 1987
Was one of the bodies Chikatilo himself led the authorities to after his arrest
Unknown woman (18-25 years old)
Was killed sometime between 1st-4th of April, 1988
Yevgeniy Muratov-15 (M) July 14, 1988
First victim to be killed near Rostov since 1985
Tatyana Ryzhova-16 (F) March 8, 1989
Killed in Chikatilo’s daughter’s apartment

14. Notable Murders (cont.)
Aleksandr Dyakonov-8 (M) May 11, 1989
Killed one day after his 8th birthday
Aleksey Moiseyev-10 (M) June 10, 1989
Second victim that Chikatilo lead authorities to after his arrest
Aleksey Khobotov-10 (M) August 28, 1989
Third victim that Chikatilo lead authorities to after his arrest
Viktor Tishchenko-16 (M) October 30, 1990
Was the victim who wounded Chikatilo, helping to arrest and convict him
Svetlana Korostik-22 (F) November 6th, 1990
Chikatilo’s last victim

15. Common Factors Most Victims female
All but a few were under 25 years old
Common injuries:
Raped/Stabbed
Eyes cut/gouged out
He was extremely superstitious and believed that the victim’s eyes would retain his image after death
Genitals/breast/tongues of victims removed
Semen usually left at scene on or near victims
This was before DNA testing, so guilty individuals could not be determined easily

16. Media Attention
While most serial killers thrive on media attention, Chikatilo did not
Every time the police released information on the crimes, he would go into a hibernation period until:
He thought it was safe
He couldn’t control his violent sexual urges any longer
A movie was made about Chikatilo called Citizen X
This was a play off the codename the police called him (Suspect X)

17. Arrest Chikatilo almost caught 1 time before
After he was finally caught as the real perpetrator
It took so long originally because torture was still an acceptable means of confession in the USSR at the time, so many false confessions were given
Finally revealed everything to the psychiatrist assisting the police in profiling the killer, Alexandr Bukhanovsky

18. Trial and death Chikatilo determined to be sane enough to stand trial
He was placed inside a cage to prevent the families of the victims from killing him
Several time over the proceedings, he would drop his trouser and reveal his genitals whenever someone in the crowd would accuse him of being homosexual
He was found guilty of 53 if the 56 counts of murder
The only reason 3 didn’t count is because they couldn’t find the bodies
Was killed by a single bullet behind the right ear in a soundproof room on Valentine’s Day, 1994

19. Psychopath Was Andrei Chikatilo a psychopath? Technically… yes
Had little remorse over the murders
Did not see these acts as particularly evil
Did not target one specific group or ethnic race for the murders
Technically… yes
Was he evil?
Because he felt no remorse for what he had done, and the murders were not committed for some higher goal (such as religion or ethnic cleansing), then yes I consider him evil

20. Motives Needed the feel of sexual power
Whenever he would, he would go after street girls and female runaways
Boys were a last resort if he could not lure away any women
Preferred children, since they were free of prejudice and would not “judge” him for what he did to them
Would occasionally remove and keep the genitals, tongues or breasts of his victims as reminders