Russian judge butchered: Shot, mutilated and left with genitals in mouth

Judge Vasily Vetlugin, 40, was murdered in Kamyshin in grotesque attack linked to an affair claims

A Russian judge has been murdered in one of the most grotesque killings in recent memory, leaving an entire community stunned and horrified.

Judge Vasily Vetlugin, 40, was gunned down outside Kamyshin City Court in the Volgograd region on 15 August before being stabbed repeatedly and mutilated in a frenzied assault. Police allege the attack was driven by jealousy, after suspicions of an affair involving the judge and his secretary.

According to investigators, the assailant confronted the judge shortly after he exited the courthouse. Witnesses described how Vetlugin had entered his car and begun to drive away when a man blocked his path. Armed with a Saiga semi-automatic hunting rifle, the attacker opened fire, forcing the judge to flee on foot.

But his escape was short-lived. Eyewitnesses recounted the chilling scene as the gunman pursued and shot him down near a lawyer’s office. What followed was described as a brutal display of rage. The attacker allegedly mutilated the judge’s body, cutting off his genitals and forcing them into his mouth, before plunging a knife into his eye.

The man arrested at the scene has been identified as 47-year-old transport business owner Sergey Kibalnikov. He is the husband of Vetlugin’s secretary, 40-year-old Yelena Kibalnikova. Police sources claim Kibalnikov suspected an affair between his wife and the judge, a suspicion that investigators believe may have fuelled the crime.

Authorities have confirmed Kibalnikov is under investigation for “murder with particular cruelty,” a charge that carries some of the heaviest penalties under Russian law. He is currently being questioned while forensic teams continue their work at the bloody crime scene.

Locals in Kamyshin, a city of around 110,000 people, have been left reeling. Court officials said Judge Vetlugin had only just presided over cases that morning before walking into what would become his death trap. A courthouse spokesperson described the killing as “an unimaginable tragedy that has shaken the judiciary to its core.”

Police are now piecing together the motive. Early reports suggest jealousy was central to the attack, though investigators have not publicly confirmed whether any affair between Vetlugin and Yelena Kibalnikova actually took place. What has been established is the extreme level of violence involved, which Russian authorities have classified as “particular cruelty.”

The attack bears the hallmarks of a meticulously staged ambush rather than a spontaneous act. Witness accounts say Kibalnikov appeared to be waiting for Vetlugin, rifle in hand, before blocking the judge’s car and opening fire.

Vetlugin’s murder comes amid growing concerns in Russia about violent outbursts linked to jealousy and domestic disputes. Though Russia’s judiciary has faced public pressure and occasional threats in recent years, attacks of this savagery are rare and have sent shockwaves well beyond Kamyshin.

Forensic investigators are examining both the firearm and the knife used in the killing. Police have cordoned off the area around the courthouse as they continue their inquiry. The Russian Investigative Committee has taken over the case, signalling its seriousness at the national level.

Judge Vetlugin, remembered by colleagues as a dedicated jurist, leaves behind a legacy now overshadowed by the horror of his death. The murder has already sparked fierce debate across Russian media, with commentators calling it one of the most brutal crimes in recent judicial history.

As the investigation continues, one question dominates discussion: was this an act of uncontrollable rage sparked by suspicion, or a calculated vendetta carried out with chilling precision? For now, Kamyshin and the wider Volgograd region remain gripped by the savage spectacle of a judge who was gunned down, mutilated, and left to die in a scene almost too shocking to believe.