The ex-boyfriend of a Russian Instagram influencer whose body was found stuffed in a suitcase last week has confessed to her murder, saying he snapped after feeling “repeatedly insulted and humiliated” by her disparaging remarks, Russian authorities allege.
Maxim Gareyev, 33, admitted to authorities that he stabbed 24-year-old Ekaterina Karaglanova “at least five times in the neck and chest” last week, BBC reported. He has been charged with murder, but has not yet formally entered a plea in Russian court.
“She constantly put me down and said that I am sexually unworthy and ugly. She lowered my financial opportunities and I couldn’t stand it,” Gareyev said in a video released by the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, which was translated from Russian by The Daily Beast. “I stabbed her at least five times with a knife in her neck and chest. I regret it.”
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Karaglanova—who was studying dermatology at a Moscow medical school— was found Friday night by her landlord in the hallway of her apartment.
Gareyev told police in the video recording that he fatally stabbed his ex-girlfriend, then took off her clothes and stuffed her body inside a suitcase, according to Russia’s Moskovsky Komsomolets. It was not immediately clear whether the 33-year-old had a lawyer present when the police interview was recorded.
Authorities allege Karaganova was murdered on June 22, the last day her family heard from her. Four days later, when her landlord opened her front door, police found a large suitcase with the 24-year-old’s legs sticking out in the hallway. Police previously said there was no evidence of a struggle at Karaglanova’s apartment and no murder weapon was found at the scene.
Gareyev was arrested on Tuesday after CCTV footage showed a man briefly visiting her apartment, prompting authorities to question him, the BBC reported.
According to Moskovsky Komsomolets, Gareyev told police he started dating Karaglanova several weeks earlier, although they had recently stopped seeing each other after she began a new relationship. The Instagram influencer was reportedly planning to celebrate her 25th birthday with her new boyfriend in the Netherlands on July 30.
Gareyev appeared Thursday in court, where he apologized to her parents and told reporters that he was “ashamed,” the Komsomolskaya Pravda reported.
“I am ashamed of myself,” he reportedly said.
While he admitted to being millions of rubles in debt, Gareyev allegedly said the slaying was not financially motivated but “spontaneous.” The Russian outlet also reported that Gareyev’s lawyer said his client will be evaluated by a mental-health expert.
