The Bitsevsky Maniac. The Chess Player with a Hammer

The story of a ruthless maniac who killed only to fill the cells of a chessboard with victims’ bodies. The author reveals the motives of the killer, Alexander Pichushkin. She shows how, step by step, an troubled teenager grew into a monster— and how his mother, stepfather, friends, and mass culture influenced him. Terrifying and strange are not only Pichushkin’s deadly ideas, but also the behavior of his victims.

“He didn’t rape anyone. He never took anything valuable. He considered it vile and low. He simply killed. He enjoyed feeling his power at the moment when a person’s life was under his control.”

Investigator Andrey Suprunenko

In the Bitsevsky Forest, people disappeared. Panic rumors spread across Russia. Forensic specialists caught copycats, but Alexander Pichushkin kept adding to his “chess collection”…

“I played with them. I knew perfectly well where the patrols were and always passed by calmly. They didn’t do anything useful—and they couldn’t possibly stop me, no matter how hard they tried. They only amused everyone and boosted self-esteem. Everyone was on edge because of the Bitsevsky maniac, but they greeted me, and nobody refused a drink.”

Alexander Pichushkin

What helped catch the killer? His mistakes? Or the investigators’ correct calculations? Perhaps, being caught and becoming known to the whole world was exactly the terrifying plan of a psychopath and a sadist! The answers to these and many other questions will be heard for the first time in this book.