‘Chessboard killer’ awaits sentencing after guilty verdict

Chessboard Killer Aleksandr Pichushkin will be sentenced on October 29 after a jury in Moscow found him guilty of killing 48 people and attempting to murder three others. The prosecution is demanding he be jailed for life.

He's officially Russia's second worst serial killer, though Pichushkin claims he's taken the lives of more than sixty people.

Aleksandr Pichushkin became known as the chessboard killer for using the black and white board to keep count of his killings – hoping eventually to fill all 64 squares.

Most of the crimes took place in Bitsevsky Park, a large forested area in southern Moscow.

Many victims were elderly men he invited to share a drink before smashing their heads in with a hammer and dumping their bodies into sewers.

During the trial Pichushkin showed no remorse. On the contrary, he appeared to enjoy giving details of his crimes, although today he was very much withdrawn and paid very little attention to what was going on and refused to give a final word.

Prosecutor Yury Syomin said Pichushkin was only charged with murders it could be shown he committed.
 
“The investigation will continue. We will look into the information submitted by Pichushkin regarding an additional eleven murders he claims to have committed,” Mr Syomin said.
 
He went on to say he expected the murderer to be given a tough sentence.

“Taking the verdict into account, the prosecution proposes life imprisonment,” he said.

Pichushkin's state-appointed lawyer Pavel Ivannikov said his client's attitude was that of a man who would use any means to become notorious.
 
He said Pichushkin could expect a touch sentence.
 
“It is hard for the defence to ask for any sort of sentence, taking into account the number of murders he is guilty of. Pichushkin himself anticipated the harsh sentence,” Mr Ivannikov said.