A chilling murder in Russia has led to women standing by the victim in a very unusual way – by posting revealing pictures of themselves on social media.
19-year-old Tatiana Strakhova was raped and murdered by her ex-partner, 19-year-old Artyom Iskhakov. He punched her before strangling and stabbing her.
After ending her life, Iskhakov proceeded to commit necrophilia twice with her corpse before dying by suicide.
Horrifyingly, some people on social media have suggested Tatiana had ‘provoked’ her former boyfriend by posting revealing images online. Many Russian women are now posting skin-baring images of their own in solidarity.
According to the Moscow Times, it is hoped this flashmob protest will help people to better understand why posting erotic pictures in no way justifies rape or murder.
The nude or semi-nude pictures are being shared under the hashtag #NoReasonToKill.
One woman, by the name of Julia, expressed disgust at some of the comments about Tatiana’s appearance which were being made online:
I opened the account of this dead girl and what did I see?
Lots of posts offering sympathies? No, I saw a gigantic flow of shit – ‘she is guilty here’, ‘she provoked him’, ‘a hooker with tattoos and pink hair’, ‘she deserved it, she ought to have had sex with him’.
I felt sick. I am sickened because, in 2018, for the majority of people tattoos and pink hair is a sign of someone’s immorality, and a murder can be approved because somebody had nude pictures in her Instagram.
Katya Obukhova, from Ekaterinburg wrote:
The reaction of people just KILLED me. This girl was called a prostitute, and she ‘deserved it.’
My question is – how does a healthy society approve of rapists and killers if their victim posted semi-nude pictures in social networks?
Violence is NOT normal. There is nothing that can justify violence. A sexual body is not a call to violence. No means no!’
Before his own death, IT student Iskhakov left an online message where he spoke of his twisted reasoning for killing Tatiana, saying he felt ‘ashamed.’
He had become deeply jealous of Tatiana’s new relationship, and had been waiting for her when she arrived home.
He described how he punched his former girlfriend in the face, causing her to fall to the ground. He also spoke about how blood came from her mouth and she asked him to leave.
In his graphic final message, Iskhakov stated:
Forgive me for taking your only child from you. I loved her very much.
You know, at this very moment I’ve realised what the f*ck I did. I feel cold and my hands have started shaking even more.
He added:
I’ve ruined the happiness of several people, and for what? In the end there is only one emptiness that will swallow me up.
According to his message, Iskhakov stopped to eat a sandwich before committing necrophilia a second time. He claims he was driven to murder because of his sexual obsession with Tatiana.
Tatiana was known to be a highly intelligent young woman, who had been studying at the Higher School of Economics at Moscow’s National Research University.
Our thoughts are with her family and friends at this difficult time.
Jules studied English Literature with Creative Writing at Lancaster University before earning her masters in International Relations at Leiden University in The Netherlands (Hoi!). She then trained as a journalist through News Associates in Manchester. Jules has previously worked as a mental health blogger, copywriter and freelancer for various publications.