This week I will be writing about the ninth most notorious serial killer the world has ever seen: Andrei Chikatilo. This Soviet serial killer had earned himself the nicknames of “Butcher of Rostov,” “The Red Ripper” or “The Rostov Ripper.” This man killed at least 52 women and children between 1978 and 1990 and was convicted in 1992 and executed in 1994. This is an estimate of how many victims there actually were because he was only convicted of fifty two murders in 1992. He had confessed to killing up to fifty six people yet they only had evidence for fifty two killings. His acts were horrendous and inhumane to say the least but by looking at his adolescence it can be understood how such an individual like Andrei Chikatilo was possible.

Chikatilo was born in in the village of Yabluchnyk in the Sumy Oblast of the Ukrainian SSR. Both of his parents were farm laborers and they shared a one-room hut that served as their home. When Chikatilo was young, his mother constantly told him that his older brother had been kidnapped and eaten by their neighbors. This curiosity sparked cannibalistic tendencies later on in his life where he would chew on his victims after he had killed them. HIs mother had also been very abusive towards her children. His father was a kind man, however he wasn’t much of a father after he had been captured as a prisoner of war during World War II, which caused Andrei to become a victim of bullying by his fellow classmates. As he matured, he and his younger sister continued to get mistreated by their mother, Andrei managed to become a studious student and an ardent Communist inspite of that. During this time, he had also discovered he suffered from impotence which lead to him being more shy towards women and deepened the self hatred promoted by his mother.

This impotence had a direct impact in his daily life. When he did have his first sexual encounter at the age of fifteen, he wrestled and overpowered a younger girl and through this suffering, he was able to become aroused. From that moment on, he associated sexual gratification with violence which he illustrated in his crimes later in life. With this it can be concluded that he had mutilated these women and children in hopes of achieving that sexual arousal and to explore the curiosity he held as a child.

It’s important to find answers to questions like: Why did he do this? Why this group of victims? Why at that specific time? Now we can relate to exactly why he did these crimes but we can understand how to him, this all made sense. Although his childhood and early life help to understand his crimes, they are still not deemed “acceptable” or “justified” by any means. It’s heartbreaking that these individuals can not be brought back, but by studying Andrei Chikatilo and his behaviors, we remember them as innocent human beings who fell victim to a monster. We honor their memories for they did change the world for the time they were in it, way better than that of Andrei Chikatilo. To all of Chikatilo’s victims, I hope they are resting in peace.

I found my information on the following websites and if you want to read more about how the socialization of one man impacted the lives of many be sure to check them out. Thanks for reading, hope you have a great weekend!

http://www.oddee.com/item_97961.aspx

http://psychopathprobz.weebly.com/psychological-analysis.html

http://www.svsd.net/cms/lib5/PA01001234/Centricity/Domain/1046/andrei%20chikatilo5.pdf

http://www.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk/crime-files/andre-chikatilo-the-rostov-ripper/crime