- Статьи
- Society
- Pestilence from berries: the court began to consider the case of a serial poisoner from Balashikha
Pestilence from berries: the court began to consider the case of a serial poisoner from Balashikha
Artyom Misyura, accused of poisoning at least nine people, two of whom died, pleaded guilty at the very first hearing in his case. This was reported by a correspondent of Izvestia from the courtroom. According to investigators, Missyura repeatedly put poison in the food and drinks of his relatives and acquaintances. Dangerous chemicals, including arsenic, benzene, and ethylene glycol, were purchased online. The experts interviewed believe that the defendant may receive a life sentence, taking into account the brutality of the murder method, the number of victims and victims. How the investigators figured out the "Balashikha poisoner" and what his motives were — in the Izvestia article.
How was the hearing on the serial poisoning case?
On August 25, the Moscow Regional Court held its first hearing on the case of the "Balashikha poisoner." According to the investigation, Artyom Missyura poisoned his grandmother, as well as a childhood friend — both victims died. In addition, the accused tried to kill seven other people in the same way — his mother, stepfather, sister, girlfriend and several acquaintances. Missyura was charged with three counts of murder of two or more persons, attempted murder and large—scale fraud.
Missura at the court session
And at the very first court hearing, the accused pleaded guilty.
The accused made his first poisoning attempt in early 2024, according to the case file. According to Artem Missyura's ex—girlfriend, she met him in 2022 - at that time Missyura allegedly held the position of CEO of a leasing company.
"He was a wonderful young man," the girl said, adding that they even planned to get married.
On January 13, 2024, she and Missura drank an alcoholic cocktail he had prepared. After that, she became dizzy, began to slur her tongue, and the girl lost consciousness. She woke up only a week later in the hospital.
At the trial, the girl also said that during the cleaning she periodically found bags of some powders at Missyura's. To her questions, the young man replied that it was fertilizers for flowers or sports nutrition.
According to the Investigative Committee for the Moscow region, the attempt on the girl's life was a test of the effects of toxic substances.
"In the fall of 2023, Missyura decided to kill his relatives and a childhood friend. He ordered highly toxic substances on the Internet and wanted to test their effect on a girl with whom he had been in a long romantic relationship. In January 2024, while in the kitchen with the girl, the man mixed a chemical substance into her drink, which led to poisoning, stroke and hospitalization of the victim," the agency said in a statement in July 2024, after Missyura's detention.
In the Moscow region Investigative Committee, it was noted that the girl survived only thanks to timely medical care. As follows from the case file, while the victim was in the hospital, Missyura gained access to her smartphone and banking applications and issued several loans in her name totaling 574 thousand rubles. Then the man transferred these funds to his account and spent them.
In the case file, announced at the court session, it was noted that the accused owed about 3 million rubles to credit organizations and individuals. On social media, Missyura demonstrated the attributes of a beautiful life: packages from branded stores, an Audi car and large bouquets of flowers.
The massacre of relatives and a childhood friend
According to the investigation, the defendant bought toxic substances (arsenic, benzene and ethylene glycol) in the fall of 2023 "through an Internet service". After testing the poison on the girl, Missyura began poisoning his relatives in January 2024, "for selfish reasons."
During a visit to his parents' apartment, he put small doses of poison in the foods that his entire family ate — his mother, grandmother, stepfather, sister and uncle. Missyura's relatives went to the hospital with symptoms of poisoning, but doctors could not determine the cause of her ill health. There were no fatalities at that time.
And in February 2024, the "Balashikha poisoner" treated his friend to berry juice, mixing a highly toxic substance into the drink. The young man died in the hospital. According to investigators, the accused committed the crime out of "envy of the successful life" of a childhood friend.
In April 2024, the defendant's grandmother was admitted to the intensive care unit, where she died shortly after.
A month later, the poisoner tried to kill his girlfriend's brother, to whom he owed a large sum of money. Missyura came to the meeting and treated the potential victim and his friend to a roll with crab sticks — he allegedly added a poisonous chemical there in advance. The victims were hospitalized, they remained alive.
Artyom Missyura was detained in July 2024 — his relatives contacted the police after another sharp deterioration in their health. Law enforcement officers installed surveillance cameras in the apartments of the victims and recorded how the accused "put substances in food, and also brought food and drinks with the addition of substances dangerous to health."
A shot from a hidden video camera installed in Missyura's apartment
"According to forensic medical examinations, chemical elements and compounds have been identified in the food products seized from the victims' apartments, the use of which leads to death," the Moscow Region Investigative Committee reported.
According to the case file, Missyura stated during the interrogation that he had tried to poison his parents in order to get their apartment.
What is the threat of serial poisoning
Given the brutality of the murder method and the number of victims, the accused could face up to 20 years in a high-security penal colony or life imprisonment, criminal defense lawyer Albert Khaleyan believes.
—The confessions of the defendant are mitigating circumstances," he said. — But when the crimes are so cynical and repeated, the judge may doubt the authenticity of this repentance and not give it a significant mitigating value. Recognition is not an indulgence, but only one of the factors that will be taken into account in the scales of justice.
According to the lawyer, the turnover of highly potent and toxic substances is regulated by law, but control over their sale via the Internet is often delayed.
"The Internet is a gray area where you can buy anything under the guise of chemicals for experiments or means for baiting rodents," he said.
The seller from whom the poisoner purchased the chemicals may be held accountable if the investigation proves that he was aware of the buyer's malicious intent. In this case, the seller is likely to be charged with complicity or violation of the rules of trafficking in certain substances, Albert Haleyan believes.
But if the turnover of substances purchased and used by Artyom Missyura is not limited by law, then the seller will not be liable, says Yuri Levin, a lawyer at branch No. 1 of the Moscow Regional Bar Association.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
