The case of the “lifter”: how decades later in Belarus solved a series of murders

The defendant, nicknamed "lifter," was found guilty of nine murders and two attempted murders involving rape. Details of one of the most high-profile criminal cases of the past years - the investigation of a series of murders committed in 1996-1999, on the air of the program "Causes and Effect" on Radio-Minsk, said the official representative of the Investigative Committee Alexander Sukhodolsky.

"Cause and effect"

The man killed teenage girls and young women in the Mogilev, Vitebsk and Minsk regions. He tracked down victims at high-rise buildings, choosing girls of fragile build, and attacked in elevators, on staircases and rooftops. They were killed or strangled with a knife. Five more attacks, the defendant carried out, in the language of the protocols, “with the purpose of committing hooligan acts and other sexual acts.”.

The crimes were solved thanks to the joint work of the Investigative Committee, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and forensic experts. New genetic techniques played a key role: from old biological traces collected in the 1990s, scientists were able to recreate the entire killer genome. In October last year, after a press conference of the Investigative Committee and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, several more women who suffered from the actions of the accused appealed to law enforcement agencies. All complaints received were carefully checked.

During the interrogation, the man pleaded guilty in full, saying that the victims “did not choose, they were caught themselves”, and he was forced to stop the murders by fear of exposure.

Photo by brestcity.com

On the basis of the collected array of evidence, the main investigative department of the central office of the Investigative Committee charged the accused under the following articles of the Criminal Code (taking into account the norms of legislation in force at the time of the crime):

1. 1.p. "g" Art. 100 (as amended by the Law of the Republic of Belarus of 01.03.1994 No. 2827-XII) of the Criminal Code of 1960 - murder associated with rape;
2. 2.paragraph "g", "h" of article 100 (as amended by the Law of the Republic of Belarus of 01.03.1994 No 2827-XII) of the Criminal Code of 1960 - murder involving rape and committed repeatedly;
3. 3.7, 16 part 2 of Art. 139 of the Criminal Code - murder involving rape and committed again;
4. 4.6, 7, 16 part 2 of article 139 of the criminal code – murder with special cruelty, associated with rape and committed again;
5. 5.part 1 of Art. 14 and paragraphs 7, 16 part 2 of Art. 139 of the Criminal Code - attempted murder involving rape and committed repeatedly;
6. 6.part 1 of Art. 14 and paragraphs 6, 7, 16 parts 2 of Art. 139 of the Criminal Code - attempted murder with special cruelty, associated with rape and committed again.

The criminal investigation is completed. The criminal case was transferred to the prosecutor for referral to the court.