The "Angarsk maniac" Mikhail Popkov has been charged with murder.

Investigators in the Irkutsk region have charged the "Angarsk maniac" Mikhail Popkov with murder committed almost 14 years ago. This was announced on April 9 by the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia.

"According to the investigation, in May 2011, in the Angarsk park behind the Sovremennik recreation center, the accused met a local resident he had never met before. During a short conversation between the defendant and the woman, a quarrel occurred, as a result of which Popkov hit the victim several times with an axe he had with him," the department's Telegram channel clarified.

According to the Investigative Committee, after the woman lost consciousness, Popkov poured a flammable liquid over her body and set it on fire. The victim died on the spot, and the attacker fled.

Investigators and criminologists have studied the materials of criminal cases from previous years, establishing a similar method of committing a crime. The collection of evidence in the criminal case continues, and it will be sent to court.

Popkov himself, while serving a life sentence, confirmed the murder of the cleaner and fully admitted guilt in the crime.

The "Angarsk maniac" is considered the bloodiest criminal in the modern history of Russia: He has 86 victims to his credit. Popkov committed all his crimes in the Irkutsk region from 1992 to 2010.

In 2015, Popkov was convicted of 22 murders and received his first life sentence. He was sentenced for the second time three years later, when it was possible to prove his involvement in 59 more deaths.

In July 2021, the court sentenced Popkov to nine years and eight months in prison in the case of two more murders committed in 1995. He received his last sentence in November 2023, when he was sentenced to another 10 years in prison.

In January 2024, the press service of the Prosecutor's office of the Irkutsk region reported that Popkov had been transferred from Irkutsk to Mordovia, noting that he had been given a final sentence of life imprisonment to be served in a special regime colony.