Offender Record · OFF-2026-032
Andrei Chikatilo (photo from the Radford University biography)
Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo
Also known as The Butcher of Rostov, The Rostov Ripper, The Red Ripper, The Forest Strip Killer
Sex
Male
Race
White
Height
6'6"
Born
1936
Custody
Deceased
States
RU, UA
Distinguishing featuresNearsighted; lesions on brain and water on brain at birth (hydrocephalus); impotent (unable to sustain erection)
Custody
Executed by gunshot to the back of the head on February 14, 1994, at Novocherkassk Prison, Rostov Oblast, Russia.
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Summary of the record
Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo was convicted of 52 murders and 5 counts of sexual assault committed between 1978 and 1990 in Russia, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. He sexually assaulted, murdered, and mutilated at least 52 women and children, targeting young victims at train and bus stations. Chikatilo confessed to 56 murders and was convicted on October 15, 1992. He was executed by firing squad on February 14, 1994, in Novocherkassk Prison.
Documented Arrests, Charges and Convictions
Dispositions are shown exactly as the cited records report them. Pending charges are updated when a court acts; a record with no remaining conviction or pending charge is removed from the site.
Murder with aggravating circumstances
Rostov Regional Court · Rostov Regional Court · Soviet criminal law · Arrested Nov 20, 1990 · Convicted Convicted · Sentence: 52 death sentences, one for each murder convicted; executed February 14, 1994
Chikatilo targeted young victims he encountered at train stations and bus depots across multiple Soviet republics. His modus operandi involved luring victims to secluded wooded areas where he would sexually assault, stab, and mutilate them. He confessed to 56 murders and was tried for 53; convicted of 52 murders and 5 counts of sexual assault. Trial evidence included testimony about stabbing victims multiple times, cannibalism of body parts including sexual organs and tongues, and postmortem mutilation including removal of eyes and genitals.
SourcesAndrei Chikatilo; Russian Federation: Andrey Chikatilo - Amnesty International; Andrei Chikatilo; Andrei Chikatilo(1936-1994); Russian schoolteacher convicted of 52 murders; Andrei Chikatilo; Andrei Chikatilo - Quotes, Childhood & Death; Andrei Chikatilo - the Butcher of Rostov - Serial Killers Info
Pattern and Background
Victim counts and the pattern of the offenses as stated by courts, agencies and the cited reporting. Suspected counts are what officials have said publicly, not a finding of this site.
52
Victims convicted
56
Victims confessed
0
Victims suspected
Active years
1978–1990
Stated motive
Sexual, Anger or revenge
Range from home
regional
Confessed
Yes
Cooperated with investigators
Yes
Education
bachelor
Marital history
Married, Divorced
Children
2
Died
1994-02-14 · executed
Places Lived, Worked and Frequented
Each place and date range comes from a cited record. Dates marked approximate are as reported. Know a place that is missing? Use Edit record under the photo; a moderator reviews it before it appears.
RU
Rodionovo, Ural Federal District, Russia
1960 – 1964 · Telephone engineer
Rostov Oblast, Southern Federal District, Russia
approx. 1963 – 1971 · Lived with wife Feodosia after marriage
Novoshakhtinsk, Southern Federal District, Russia
1971 – 1973 · Teacher at Vocational School No. 32, teaching Russian language and literature
Shakhty City District, Southern Federal District, Russia
1973 – 1981 · Teacher at Technical School No. 33, Shakhty mining school
Rostov Oblast, Southern Federal District, Russia
1981 – 1984 · Supply clerk at construction materials factory; job involved travel
Novocherkassk, Southern Federal District, Russia
Aug 1984 – Nov 1990 · Traveling buyer for railway company; later supply clerk with travel access
Rostov-on-Don, Southern Federal District, Russia
Sep 13, 1984 – Dec 12, 1984 · Arrested at bus station for theft from employer; held on minor charges
Novocherkassk, Southern Federal District, Russia
Nov 20, 1990 – Oct 15, 1992 · Arrested after observed acting suspiciously near railroad station; detained and interrogated; confessed to 56 murders between November 30-December 5, 1990
Novocherkassk, Southern Federal District, Russia
Nov 20, 1990 – Feb 14, 1994 · Novocherkassk Prison; trial April 14-August 1992; convicted October 14, 1992; executed by gunshot February 14, 1994
UA
Yablochnoe, Southern Federal District, Ukraine
approx. 1936 – 1942 · Birthplace
Timeline
Oct 16, 1936
Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo born in Yablochnoye, Ukraine.
1957
Chikatilo began Soviet Army national service.
1960
Chikatilo returned home and found work as a telephone engineer near Rostov.
1963
Chikatilo married Feodosia (Fayina).
1964
Chikatilo began correspondence courses in Russian literature and philology at Rostov University.
1971
Chikatilo completed his degree and began career as a teacher at Vocational School No. 32 in Novoshakhtinsk.
1973
Chikatilo moved to Technical School No. 33 in Shakhty, a mining school.
Apr 1973
Chikatilo attempted to rape a female student named Anna; ejaculated in his pants while beating her with a ruler but was not punished.
Sep 1978
Chikatilo moved to Shakhty and began working as a teacher with access to school grounds.
Dec 22, 1978
Chikatilo murdered his first documented victim, 9-year-old Lena Zakotnova, near Shakhty; lured her into a shed, attempted rape, strangled and stabbed her.
Mar 1981
Chikatilo forced to resign from teaching position following complaints of sexual assaults on students.
Mar 1981
Chikatilo began work as supply clerk for raw materials factory in Rostov; position involved travel.
Feb 22, 1984
Chikatilo charged with theft of state property and encouraged to find new employment.
Aug 01, 1984
Chikatilo found new employment as supply clerk with heavy industrial machinery plant.
Sep 13, 1984
Chikatilo observed by undercover detectives attempting to lure young women at Rostov bus station; arrested and held.
Dec 12, 1984
Chikatilo released from custody after serving 3 months of 1-year sentence for theft; blood type misidentification prevented murder charges.
Dec 22, 1984
Chikatilo charged with theft of state property and sentenced to one year of corrective labor by People's Court of Leninsk Region, Shakhty.
Aug 1985
Chikatilo resumed killing after release, murdering two women in separate incidents.
Nov 06, 1990
Chikatilo murdered his final victim, Svetlana Korostik, age 22; emerged from woods with blood on face and was questioned but initially released.
Nov 20, 1990
Chikatilo arrested after observed acting suspiciously at railroad station; formally arrested and interrogated.
1992
Chikatilo's marriage to Feodosia dissolved by divorce.
Apr 14, 1992
Trial of Chikatilo commenced in Rostov Regional Court; he was tried for 53 murders and 5 counts of sexual assault; held in iron cage throughout proceedings.
Oct 14, 1992
Chikatilo found guilty of 52 of 53 murders and 5 counts of sexual assault committed when working as teacher in 1970s.
Oct 15, 1992
Chikatilo sentenced to death for each of 52 murders by Rostov Regional Court.
Feb 14, 1994
Chikatilo executed by single gunshot to the back of the head in soundproofed room at Novocherkassk Prison.
Sources
Solve the Case is never the original source. Each item below is the public record a statement on this page rests on, with an archived copy where one exists.
News report · IMDB ·
Andrei Chikatilo(1936-1994)“He was finally captured on November 20, 1990, when a policeman noticed him acting suspiciously at a railroad station, detained him, and further investigation revealed that he had just committed three murders. On October 14, 1992, Andrei Chikatilo was convicted of 52 murders -- one charge was dropped for lack of evidence -- and five counts of child molestation.”
Other · Wikipedia ·
Andrei Chikatilo“Andrei Romanovich Chikatilo (16 October 1936 – 14 February 1994) was a Ukrainian-born Soviet serial killer who sexually assaulted, murdered, and mutilated at least fifty-two women and children between 1978 and 1990.”
News report · EBSCO ·
Andrei Chikatilo“In 1984 Chikatilo, who was observed acting suspiciously at a bus station, was arrested. Without physical evidence of murder, authorities detained him on minor charges; he served three months of a one-year sentence. Between November 30 and December 5, 1990, Chikatilo broke under pressure and confessed to fifty-six murders.”
News report · Britannica ·
Andrei Chikatilo“Arrested in 1984 but released due to a blood type misidentification, he resumed killing until his final arrest in 1990. He confessed, was convicted of 52 murders, and was executed in Moscow.”
News report · Biography.com ·
Andrei Chikatilo - Quotes, Childhood & Death“Following his release, Chikatilo found work as a traveling buyer for a train company, based in Novocherkassk, and managed to keep a low profile until August 1985, when he murdered two women in separate incidents. In 1971, Chikatilo changed careers to become a schoolteacher.”
News report · IMDB ·
Andrei Chikatilo - Biography“Born October 16, 1936 · Yablochnoye, Velikaya Pisarevka Rayon, Kharkov Oblast, Ukrainian SSR, USSR. Height 6′ 4″ (1.93 m).”
News report · Serial Killers Info ·
Andrei Chikatilo - the Butcher of Rostov - Serial Killers Info“His first known victim was killed on 22nd December 1978. The victim was 9 year old Lena Zakotnova. It is believed that he lured her into an abandoned shed, where he attempted to rape her. While trying to stop the girl from struggling, Andrei Chikatilo slashed her with a knife, ejaculating whilst doing so.”
Other · Radford University Department of Psychology ·
Radford University serial killer biography: Chikatilo, Andrei“Compilation of publicly available information about Andrei Chikatilo's life and crimes, including birth date, victim timeline, and conviction details.”
Other government record · Amnesty International ·
Russian Federation: Andrey Chikatilo - Amnesty International“Andrey Chikatilo, aged 57 and of Ukrainian nationality, was sentenced to death on 15 October 1992 by Rostov Regional Court. He had been found guilty of murdering 52 people in southern Russia, Ukraine and Uzbekistan between 1978 and 1990.”
News report · United Press International ·
Russian schoolteacher convicted of 52 murders“A former schoolteacher was convicted Wednesday of killing 52 boys, girls and young women in a 12-year spree of murder and mutilation across the former Soviet Union. Chikatilo was convicted of killing and mutilating 21 boys, 14 girls and 17 young women.”
Discussion
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