Ukraine: Judge and Family Beheaded at Home

Published: 17 December 2012

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A judge in Kharkiv, Ukraine and three members of his family were beheaded Saturday in the judge's home, local media reported Monday..

The murders may be related to the work of Judge Vladimir Trofimov or the result of a robbery gone bad, authorities told a Ukrainian news site Monday.

Police said some of the judge’s antique collectibles were missing from his home, which supported the latter theory. But the gruesome nature of the crimes, as well as their occurence on Ukrainian "National Judge Day" suggest a deeper motive.

As of Sunday evening, the heads of the corpses remained missing, according to media reports.

Senior law enforcers, including the prosecutor general and Interior Ministry and security service SBU officials, flew to Kharkiv this weekend to coordinate the investigation, Reuters reported Monday.