In Sysert, the owner of the pistol will be tried 26 years later for the cold-blooded murder of a married couple.

      On April 7, 2026, the criminal case regarding a double murder committed 26 years ago in Aramil was submitted to the court in Sysert, the Sverdlovsk region prosecutor's office reported on Tuesday.

      The native of the Chelyabinsk region will stand trial on charges under paragraphs "a" and "j" of part 2 of article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (murder of two persons by a group of persons by prior agreement - as amended by Federal Law No. 156-FZ of 09.07.1999). According to the investigation, on September 26, 1999, between 7:00 PM and 11:00 PM, the accused and an unidentified person (the criminal case against whom has been separated for separate proceedings) arrived at the house of an acquaintance to whom the accused had previously sold a car, on Chapayev Street in Aramil. During a quarrel in the yard with the homeowner, the accused fired at least four shots, aiming at the head, neck, and chest area of the victim, from a Makarov pistol loaded with live 9 mm cartridges.

      Hearing the noise from the house, the victim's wife ran out. Acting according to the role assigned to him, the currently unidentified accomplice led her back into the house, where he restrained her and did not allow her to call for help. He then took the woman to a covered courtyard and began to watch to ensure that no outsiders entered.

      At this time, the accused struck the woman at least once on the head with an unidentified hard object, and then fired at least two shots at her head. As a result of the intentional joint criminal actions of the accused and his accomplice, both victims died at the scene.

      During verification by the Federal Ballistics Database, it was established that one bullet and three shell casings seized during the inspection of the crime scene were fired from a "PM" pistol of 9 mm caliber, which was seized from the accused in February 2002.

      The accused did not admit guilt in committing the crime, refused to testify, exercising the right provided for by Article 51 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. The criminal case has been sent to the Sysert District Court for substantive consideration.