Support The Moscow Times!

Muscovites Bring Flowers to Metro Station to Mourn Murdered Girl

A Russian police officer stands at the site where a woman suspected of murdering a young child was detained, near Oktyabrskoye Pole metro station in Moscow, Russia. Maxim Zmeyev / Reuters

Moscow residents have been bringing flowers and toys to the Oktyabrskoye Pole metro station in the northwest of the city, where on Monday a woman holding the severed head of a child was detained, the Interfax news agency reported Tuesday.

As of Tuesday morning, there were flowers, toys, chocolates, sweets and candles near the metro station exit. Many people stopped for some time near the improvised memorial. Most people at the scene demand severe punishment for the suspected murderer, the news agency reported.

On Monday, a 38-year old Uzbek national ?€” Gyulchekhra Bobokulova ?€” holding a severed girl's head and shouting ?€?Allahu Akbar?€? was detained near the metro station.

The woman turned out to be the nanny of the 4-year old girl, whose decapitated body had been discovered earlier that day by firefighters after putting out a fire in an apartment in northwestern Moscow.

According to investigators, the nanny had waited for the girl's parents to leave the house, killed the child, set the apartment on fire and fled.

The investigators ordered the detained woman to undergo a forensic psychiatric examination. An unidentified source in the law enforcement agencies, cited by Interfax, claimed Bobokulova was under the influence of psychotropic drugs.

The nanny confessed to the murder and agreed to provide the details of the crime to the police, the Interfax reported late Monday, citing an undisclosed law enforcement source.

An investigation is currently under way in the apartment where the girl was murdered, the source told the news agency.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more