It had previously been believed that Milena Shevelyova, 17, had been killed by an aggressive sow but new information hints that her death might have been due to a farmworker
Twist in death of schoolgirl believed to have been killed by pig
A schoolgirl was fed to her father’s pigs after a farm worker with a grudge hit her with a stick and left her for dead, Russian investigators said.
It was previously believed Milena Shevelyova, 17, had been killed by an aggressive sow as she fed animals on her family’s smallholding. But in a dramatic twist, detectives in the Krasnoyarsk region have arrested a neighbour who worked for her father.
Igor Zaika, 40, “harboured a grudge” and intended to kill livestock belonging to Milena’s father, he told officers. He found Milena – who had been left home alone in charge of the animals – and struck her, he confessed, according to the Russian Investigative Committee.
He hit her twice and then left her for the animals to devour, it is suspected. “I opened the door and saw his daughter leaving,” he said in a committee video.
“I hit her twice. I hit her the first time, she [pushed me] away. I hit her the second time.” He said: “I hit her a second time, she fell over there.”
Zailka has been taken into custody. Milena’s body was found with animal bites and it is believed she was savaged by pigs and bulls that she had been feeding when Zaika found her.
Now it appears he struck her first, leaving her to be eaten by the beasts. Earlier it was believed the initial attack was by an “aggressive female pig”.
Despite Zaika’s confession, further investigations are underway. “The animals tore her femoral artery and bit her,” said an initial report on the bizarre case.
“Milena died from blood loss.” She had multiple wounds to her head and body from “pig bites”.
Her worried parents could not reach her by phone and asked a friend to check on her. “He found the body,” said the report.
“The parents told the police that the pig had always been angry and aggressive.” A paramedic team confirmed the girl’s death.
The prosecutor of Krasnoyarsk’s Uzhursky District immediately went to the scene. “Her body was sent for a forensic medical examination, the results of which will determine the exact cause of death,” said a statement.
“The conditions that contributed to the tragedy are being established. If there are grounds, all necessary prosecutorial measures will be taken.”
The victim’s boyfriend Vladimir Bedny, 18, posted: “You will forever remain in my heart.”