Russian Neo-Nazi Who Served 16 Years for Murder of Lawyer and Journalist: "He Was Asking for It with His Views on the Chechen Campaign"

Evgenia Khasis. Screenshot from video

On January 19, 2009, lawyer Stanislav Markelov and Novaya Gazeta journalist Anastasia Baburova were shot dead in the center of Moscow. In November of the same year, Nikita Tikhonov and Evgenia Khasis were arrested on charges of their murder.

Tikhonov and Khasis were members of the Combat Organization of Russian Nationalists (BORN) — a group that committed a series of murders motivated by political and racial hatred. This organization was considered the militant wing of the neo-Nazi organization "Russian Image," founded by Nikita Tikhonov and Ilya Goryachev.

In May 2011, the Moscow City Court sentenced Tikhonov to life imprisonment, and Khasis to 18 years in a penal colony. In 2022, the Supreme Court reduced her sentence to 17 years, excluding the charge of illegal possession of weapons due to the expiration of the statute of limitations. Khasis was also acquitted of complicity in Baburova's murder — the investigation deemed the journalist's death an "excess of the perpetrator." According to the investigation, Tikhonov shot the victims, while Khasis transmitted a radio signal to him about Markelov's appearance and the direction of his movement.

On November 28, 2023, Khasis was released. In her first interview after release, given to Ksenia Sobchak, she for the first time admitted her guilt in Markelov's murder in 2009, although she noted that, according to the court's verdict, she was not guilty of Baburova's death. In court in 2011, Khasis completely denied her involvement in the crime.

Evgenia Khasis has now recounted the events of January 19, 2009, when Baburova and Markelov were shot. According to her, the night before, she did not know about the upcoming operation — her common-law husband Nikita Tikhonov asked her to accompany him because he could not contact another accomplice. Khasis's task was to report Markelov's direction of movement by radio after he left the press conference.

Admitting complicity in the crime, Khasis confirmed that she understood the possibility of murder but did not fully realize that it would happen at that exact moment. She said that she saw Baburova leaving with Markelov but did not inform Tikhonov about it — she only followed the direct instruction to report the lawyer's direction of movement.

Additionally:

• Khasis stated that in her penal colony, she was offered to go to war as a volunteer; she signed a contract, but ultimately, none of those who signed it were taken. She also learned that Tikhonov and Ilya Goryachev, the leader of BORN, also asked to be sent to the front but were refused.
• She stated that she last communicated with Tikhonov in person in 2012 during his transfer for Ilya Goryachev's case. In 2022, during a video conference in the Supreme Court, he called her a "conspirator," which, according to her, put an end to their relationship.
• She explained the ideology of "Russian Image" as an "extreme form of patriotism" and spoke about the organization's ties with the Russian presidential administration through Vladislav Surkov and Leonid Simonin. According to her, Ilya Goryachev received grants for youth policy and permits for nationalist concerts and marches, including under the walls of Red Square on National Unity Day.
• She described the conspiracy system within BORN: phones with foreign SIM cards were stored separately from living quarters, communication was maintained once every few days, and forums were used for correspondence under the guise of discussing innocuous topics.
• She described the selection of targets for murders as an attempt to draw attention to "painful societal issues." Markelov allegedly became a target due to his defense of Chechen interests and criticism of the Russian army's actions. As Khasis said, "he was asking for it with his actions."
• She learned during the interview that her former friend Alexei Baranovsky, who provided false testimony for her alibi, is now fighting on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as part of the "Freedom of Russia" Legion. Khasis said that this information shocked her.
• She spoke about her suicide attempt in court as part of a defense strategy — to postpone sessions until the May holidays and disband the jury panel due to the possible non-appearance of some members after a prolonged break.
• She admitted that she gave testimony in 2014 in the BORN case after an offer from law enforcement: either tell everything and get Tikhonov's life sentence commuted to any other non-conditional term, or continue to "resist" and face the consequences.
• She expressed deep remorse: "I was remade, sewn anew. I repent. I clearly understand what I was serving my sentence for." Especially, according to her, she regrets Baburova's death: "She should not have become a victim that day."
• Khasis retained "patriotic views," stating support for the "SVO" (Special Military Operation) and the actions of the Russian army. She admitted that the Chechen campaign and Markelov's statements still evoke emotions in her but noted that 16 years in the penal colony "softened" her radicalism.

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