Tamara Samsonova, a 67-year-old pensioner and a former hotel worker, was arrested for allegedly executing the so-called “Granny Ripper” murders.
Samsonova’s last job involved caring for an elderly woman, 79-year-old Valentina Ulanova. After Ulanova’s headless body was found on Dimitrova Street in St Petersburg, Russia, the police went after Samsonova. More than a simple suspect, authorities uncovered CCTV footage, which allegedly showed Samsonova carrying a black plastic bag filled with the body parts.
Once Samsonova was brought in by police, she admitted to beheading and chopping up at least ten victims during a 20-year killing spree.
If the confession didn’t suffice, police also found a knife and blood spots in the bathroom of her home as well as a very telling diary. In it, Samsonova detailed the grisly murders that she allegedly carried out in different parts of St. Petersburg. She’d written about her secret life as a serial killer in several languages: Russian, English and German. Police say she also had a sizeable collection of black magic and astrology books
Russian officers are now busily comparing Samsonova’s diary entries with unsolved murder cases that fit the signature style of the Granny Ripper murders: dismembered victims with body parts left in black plastic bags all around the city.
In fact, a headless, armless and legless man’s body was found 12 years ago on the same street where the headless body of Ulanova, the elderly woman who Samsonova took care of, was found. Police have found further evidence that Granny the Ripper had known this man — a business card for the dead male victim was found inside Samsonova’s home. Also, in her diary, Samsonova mentions the man’s tattoos, as if she were familiar with his body. And that’s not where it all ends–not even close!
According to Russian police, “This woman is [also] incriminated in the murder of her tenant, a 44 year old native of Norilsk, who was renting a room in her apartment, on September 6 2003 during a sudden argument. After that she dismembered his body and took it outside.”
Samsonova admitted to the murder of yet another former tenant whose dismembered body was found in plastic bags. And one more victim could very well be her own husband. She reported him missing in 2005, and he was never found. There’s now strong reason to fear that she also killed him, though she has not yet confessed it.
In addition to her confessions, which police say lacked detail, Samsonova told some very strange lies while in custody. She claimed she was a former actress and a graduate of the Vaganov ballet academy, but later admitted to working in a hotel years ago.
Samsonova has become a strange sort of celebrity lately. Russian tabloids call her Baba Yaga, after a horrifying supernatural old woman in Slavic folklore.
In a disturbing police video (see above) following her arrest, Samsonova eerily blows a kiss to the camera.
Categorised in: Bizarre, Serial Killers
This post was written by Nadia Vella