KIEV/MOSCOW, December 15 (RIA Novosti) – A district judge and three of his family members were slain in a medieval-styled bloodbath in Ukraine’s Kharkov on Saturday, which is Judicial Employee Day in the country.
Four beheaded bodies were discovered in the judge’s apartment by a relative, Kharkov Region police said in a statement.
Local media identified the judge as Vladimir Trofimov, 58. The other victims were his 59-year-old wife, 30-year-old son and the son’s 29-year-old girlfriend, whose names were withheld.
City police admitted the mass murder could have been connected to the judge’s professional activity, but reported no leads as of Saturday evening.
The most famous beheading in Ukraine’s recent history took place in 2000 and cost the life of whistleblowing journalist Georgy Gongadze, who actively criticized then-President Leonid Kuchma for corruption. Three police officers were convicted over Gongadze’s death, but a recent controversial ruling cleared Kuchma in the case.
