The Main Investigations Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia has finished the investigation into the death of six-year-old Stepan Kukin in 2018. Guardian Yulia Blokhina and her husband Yevgeny Blokhin have been brought to justice.

In April 2017, Stepan Kukin was placed with a foster family of Yevgeny and Yulia Blokhins, living with Blokhina’s three daughters. The guardians developed a negative attitude towards the boy. For several months, Yulia and Yevgeny Blokhins systematically beat the foster child out of animosity and failed to provide him with medical assistance on the inflicted injuries.

According to the investigation, on August 10, 2018, being under the influence of alcohol, Blokhina struck the helpless child numerous times with hands and hand-held objects inflicting on Stepan a range of bodily injuries that caused a coma.

After that, Yulia Blokhina convinced her husband to conceal the crime traces and urged her elder daughter who was not subject to criminal responsibility due to her young age to perjure herself and take the blame for beating Stepan.

The nurse, acquainted with the Blokhins family, who dropped by their house by accident, called an emergency brigade, the members of which admitted the child in a healthcare institution where Stepan subsequently died without regaining consciousness.

The performance of complex interconnected forensic and other examinations and interrogation of witnesses from the social circle of the family helped the investigation to obtain evidence refuting Blokhina’s version of events and enabled the investigation to press charges against her for a murder, regular infliction of medium bodily harm, torture, abandoning to danger, and failure to discharge the duties of bringing up a minor (Paragraphs C, D of Part 2 of Article 105; Paragraphs C, D of Part 2 of Article 112; Paragraphs D, F of Part 2 of Article 117; Article125; and Article 156 of the Criminal Code of Russia), and against Blokhin for intentional infliction of medium bodily harm, torture, and abandoning to danger (Paragraphs C, D of Part 2 of Article 112; Paragraphs D, F of Part 2 of Article 117; and Article 125 of the Criminal Code of Russia).

The investigators collected enough evidence for the criminal case to be referred to the Prosecutor’s Office to approve an indictment.

 

Official spokesperson for the Investigative Committee of Russia S. Petrenko