Trofimov Beheadings

{{Short description|2012 beheadings in Kharkiv, Ukraine}}
{{Expand Ukrainian|topic=hist|fa=yes}}{{Infobox event
| title = Trofimov beheadings
| image = Житловий будинок №85 по Московському проспекту міста Харкова.jpg
| image_upright = 1.2
| caption = The crime scene
| date = 15 December 2012
| location = [[Kharkiv]], Ukraine
| coordinates =
| target = Trofimov family
| type = [[Home invasion]], [[mass murder]]
| motive = Unknown. Possibly revenge or theft
| map =
| outcome =
| reported deaths = {{Plainlist|
* Volodymyr Serhiyovych Trofimov (58)
* Iryna Kostyantynivna Trofimova (59)
* Sergei Volodymyrovych Trofimov (30)
* Maria Ihorivna Zuyeva (28)
}}
}}
The '''Trofimov beheadings''' was a [[mass murder]] committed in 2012 in [[Crime in Ukraine|Ukraine]], in which a [[judge]] and his family were [[Decapitation|beheaded]] with a [[machete]]. The judge, Vladimir Trofimov, his wife Irina, their son Sergei, and Sergei's [[girlfriend]] were attacked in the eastern Ukraine city of [[Kharkiv]] on December 15, 2012.{{Cite web|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/judge-family-beheaded-kharkiv/24799701.html|title=Judge, Family Beheaded In Kharkiv|website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty|language=en|access-date=2019-12-06}} The judge was attacked at his family home. The bodies were all left at the scene, minus their heads. It was reported that Sergei was beheaded while still alive, while the other victims were beheaded post-mortem.{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/ukraine/9749099/Beheaded-body-of-Ukraine-judge-found-in-apartment.html |title=Beheaded body of Ukraine judge found in apartment |agency=Agence France-Presse|work=The Telegraph |date=16 December 2012 |accessdate=2013-08-18}}

==Investigation==
[[Police of Ukraine|Police]] stated that the motive for the murders was either [[revenge]] or theft. Trofimov, 58, had worked as a [[magistrate]] and judge for more than 30 years, and was a noted [[Antique collecting|antiques collector]]. The attack came on a celebration day for judges in Ukraine. The case was described as one of the most shocking to emerge from the new European state in the [[news media|international media]], with many commentators using the case to spotlight the flawed [[Judiciary of Ukraine|Ukrainian judicial system]].{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2012/12/17/beheadings-ukraine/1774331/ |title=Judge, his family beheaded in Ukraine |agency=Associated Press|website=Usatoday.com |date=17 December 2012 |accessdate=2013-08-18}}

==See also==
*[[List of unsolved murders (2000–present)]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{coord missing|Ukraine}}

[[Category:2010s in Kharkiv]]
[[Category:2012 murders in Ukraine]]
[[Category:Decapitation]]
[[Category:December 2012 crimes in Europe]]
[[Category:Family murders]]
[[Category:2012 mass murders]]
[[Category:Unsolved mass murders]]
[[Category:Unsolved murders in Ukraine]]
[[Category:21st-century mass murders in Ukraine]]
[[Category:December 2012 in Europe]]
[[Category:Knife attacks in Ukraine]]
[[Category:Mass stabbings in Ukraine]]
[[Category:Stabbing attacks in 2012]]
[[Category:Attacks on residential buildings in Ukraine]]
[[Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 2012]]

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