Crime and punishment: the murder predicted by Dostoevsky
The heroine of the legendary novel existed in real life. Moreover, this unenviable role went to the close relative of Fyodor Mikhailovich - his older sister Varvara Karepina. The tragedy that occurred on January 21 on the house near Petrovsky Boulevard, 1893, almost completely repeated the events described in "Crime and Punishment." The death of Varvara Mikhailovna was one of the most discussed and resonant criminal cases of that time.
Old woman lender
Family life at Varvara Mikhailovna did not work out. In 1840, she married a wealthy and influential PA Karepina. But ten years later, her husband died suddenly. Barbara at that time was twenty-eight. Here is what the writer's daughter Lyubov Dostoevskaya recalled: “But, of course, my aunt Varvara was the most unhappy. She married a fairly wealthy man who left her, after her death, several apartment buildings in Moscow. These houses brought her a good income, her children were well arranged and did not lack anything. Therefore, she could provide herself with all the amenities at her age. But, unfortunately, the poor woman suffered disgusting, certainly pathological stinginess. In desperation, she untied the laces of her wallet; the slightest expense made her miserable. In the end, she calculated the servants, so as not to pay her. She never heated her apartment and spent the whole winter in a fur coat; she did not cook; she bought some bread and milk twice a week. There was a lot of talk about this inexplicable stinginess throughout the county. They assured that my aunt Varvara had a lot of money and, like all misers, she keeps it in her possession. ”
And brother Andrei Mikhailovich Dostoevsky wrote in the 28 number of the Moscow Leaf (beginning of 1893 of the year): “Her late husband, although he had a very favorable position as the governor of the office of the Moscow military governor-general (under Prince Golitsyn), was respected in Moscow, but after his death, he left nothing but a negligible pension (almost no less than 200 rubles a year) to his widow. The house in which Mrs. Karepina had so tragically ended her life was her dowry. Possessing strong willpower and non-female energy, the young widow managed not only to raise her children, but also to arrange them, almost without any means and out of pride without any help from anyone. After spending nearly two decades in constant restraint and self-restraint, the deceased became accustomed to prudence and even, apparently, to stinginess. But prudence and even apparent stinginess were allowed by her only in relation to herself, to all those close to her she was all kindness, all generosity. So, she constantly helped and in recent years even kept on her account both her daughter and her numerous family. A lot of other good deeds were arranged by the deceased, which, of course, I will not spread now, in view of the still warm grave of hers. All this does not seem like a condescending stinginess. In conclusion, I consider it superfluous to add that the great Russian writer and thinker F.M. Dostoevsky was the brother of the deceased and, despite her prudence, he loved and respected her very much, not only as a sister, but also as a woman of rare intellect and firm character. ”
But nevertheless, public opinion about it was not good. Neighbors recalled that in her old age, Varvara Mikhailovna was completely closed. She was afraid of any rustling and did not let anyone into the apartment. Moreover, fearing unnecessary expenses, the old woman dismissed the cook and servants. It was rumored that she saw in them thieves who dreamed of picking her to the skin. Such a position will undoubtedly make anyone think that innumerable treasures are hidden in her house. In fact, Kepina had no treasures. But still, potential criminals could profit by twelve thousand rubles in securities, which the old woman had discreetly hidden in various hiding places. Also, Varvara Mikhailovna had a few hundred rubles, which is called "cash". But most of all she was worried about in a couple of hours: the golden pocket ones, left over from her late husband, and her own - old wrist watches, which her husband presented to her.
But the public did not know this. And it was rumored in Moscow that the writer's sister was fabulously rich. One gossip claimed that Varvara Mikhailovna secretly sold some of their apartment buildings for thirty thousand rubles. That was already more than a solid amount.
Strange death
For a couple of weeks, an unpleasant incident happened to Karepina - they grabbed a bag with money and apartment keys on the street. After that, she finally, literally, closed from everyone. That evening, the old woman had a nightmare. She saw herself in a dream naked to the waist, and the upper half of her body was disfigured. Karepina felt that this was a bad omen, warning of a violent death.
In the morning of January 21, the janitor Ivan Arkhipov (he lived in the kitchen of an old woman who was fenced off by a wall with a door) felt the smell of burning. He saw clouds of smoke erupting from under the door leading to Krepina’s apartment. Soon the police arrived. They knocked the door down and found Varvara Mikhailovna’s badly burned body. At a cursory examination of the corpse, a version of the accident was put forward. Like, an old woman accidentally knocked the lamp over on herself, refilling it with kerosene. The investigators were surprised by the fact that the upper part of the body was so badly burned that it was impossible to recognize Karepin. Detectives were hooked and for scattered books and papers on the table. Further more. It turned out that the middle drawer in the desk, as well as the bedside table were open. And the door of the last strongly burned.
After inspecting the room, the police again began to study the body. Soon the version of the accident had to be brushed off. Karepina’s position seemed unnatural, as if she herself had not fallen unconscious, but someone had carefully placed it. In addition, if Varvara Mikhailovna had really accidentally knocked over a “kerosene”, she would have burned her skirt, and not the upper part of the dress. And the skirt was in general not touched by fire. Then it turned out that money, securities and watches had disappeared in the house. All this forced the investigators to put forward the version of the murder.
And the investigative experiment showed that the door leading from the kitchen to the black staircase (it was the police who broke it) could have closed on its own, for this it was not necessary to be on the inside. If you put the hook vertically, close the door, and then lightly hit the lintel, it fell into a loop. So, probably, the criminal thus closed the door behind him, trying to set the murder as an accident.
At number one in the list of suspects was the janitor Arkhipov. A few days after the mistress’s funeral, he began to buy expensive items for himself. Especially stood out leather boots in which he sported on the crowded streets. In addition, Arkhipov now and then began to visit some taverns, and in the company of a woman. Previously, this was not observed. Detectives put a "tick" and began to work on the second option - Fedor Yurgin, who was a frequenter of brothels on Rozhdestvensky Boulevard. Curiously, the police did not realize that these young people were tied. The case and ... banal jealousy helped to know their secret. Yurgin diligently courted one lovely young lady named Anna, to whom another suitor had the looks - Alexander. Because of the girl between them now and then there were conflicts. And the young lady herself did not give any of them any preferences and did not pay attention to their courtship. But ... suddenly she was filled with tender feelings for Yurgin. Anna changed her anger to mercy after Fyodor suddenly bought himself a fox fur coat and began to spend impressive sums on her passion. In addition, Yurgin boasted that he always had with him a whole pile of securities, so, just in case. Alexander could not fail. He did not shoot or drown (the events did not take place in a novel, but in reality), but went to his relative, the detective police agent. He told him about metamormosis of Yurgin. And Fedor was paid close attention.
It turned out that Yurgin came from the peasants of Vladimir district, and in the white stone worked as a seasonal mason. Established the police and the fact of his, though far, but still a relationship with the janitor Arkhipov. Soon Fedor was arrested. During the search of his apartment, money, securities and watches belonging to the late Varvara Mikhailovna were found.
Obsession
Together with Yurgin they arrested Arkhipov. Janitor at the time was nineteen years old. During the interrogation, he behaved pitifully and quickly, as they say, split. Ivan admitted that he did not want the death of the old woman, they say, it was Yurgin who was to blame for everything - it was he who made him commit a crime. Arkhipov also said that his only fault was that, through recklessness and stupidity, Fyodor had once told me about the wealth of Karepina. And killing an old woman became an obsession for him. After all, there was practically no seasonal work left at that time, and the young man was literally aground. Arkhipov repented and that he had deceived the trust of Varvara Mikhailovna, they say, he was the only one she trusted. Karepina knew him all her life, so she took the job and settled in her kitchen.
Arkhipov hoped that he would manage to shift all the blame on the relative, but the plan failed. After interrogation of Yurgin, confrontation with Ivan and a number of investigative experiments, detectives managed to recreate the crime scene. On the twentieth of January, at about nine o'clock yesterday, drunken Yurgin entered the kitchen of Arkhipov. He declared that he wanted to do away with the old woman. Ivan felt sorry for his mistress, so he tried to save her. He knew that as soon as he left the kitchen, Varvara Mikhailovna would go there to close the door behind him. And if she sees a stranger there, she will lock herself up. Thus, Arkhipov would have been able to save her. Saying Yurgin that he needed to leave for a minute (to give someone money), Ivan shouted: “Lady, I'm leaving!”. Then he went to the black stairs and stopped. According to the janitor, he was so scared that his legs would not obey. As always, Karepina appeared, but she did not notice Yurgin, who managed to hide. As soon as the old woman came to the door, he jumped out of his hiding place and began to choke her. During the interrogation, Fyodor recalled: she looked at him so compassionately that he did not hold back tears. However, he did not remove the palm, which tightly closed the mouth and nose of the old woman. Soon Varvara Mikhailovna closed her eyes and slowly sank to the floor. Then Yurgin took a towel and wrapped Kepina’s face around them. Then listened to the heartbeat. And convinced of her death, he began to scour the apartment in search of untold wealth. In the drawers, desk, and chest, Fedor found all her savings, securities, and watches. When nothing was left in the apartment, Yurgin took the glass out of the lamp, poured kerosene on the table and the old woman. Then he carefully laid the lamp on its side, as if it had fallen. In this preparation for the dramatization of the accident were completed. Fedor dragged the half-dead Arkhipov to the apartment and ordered him to set fire to the old woman or the table at two o'clock in the morning, and then go to bed. After this, Yurgin went to celebrate the main change in his life. But Arkhipov was left alone with the corpse ...
At first he lay down on his bed and tried to sleep. But he did not succeed. Then Ivan wanted to kill himself, though he could not find the knife (he lied, the knife was in his own room). Then Arkhipov decided that he would burn with the old woman. With this thought, the janitor waited for the coveted two o'clock in the morning. When the time came, he set fire to the kerosene with a match on the table, locked all the doors (including the one leading from the kitchen to the stairs), hid the keys in his mitten and lay down on the bed. So Arkhipov lay until morning, the fire did not get to the kitchen. Then he decided that it was time to "find" a fire.
Yurgin, instantly rich, lost a sense of reality. He littered money and talked about securities. During a meeting with one familiar petty official, Fedor decided to shikanut what is called before him: he treated himself to vodka and an expensive snack. Then he invited him to "visit the young ladies." The official asked, how do you get so much money? Yurgin proudly replied: “Earned, sir! It's only the beginning! The time will come, we will turn over thousands! ” But not destiny. Fedor was arrested already on December 31. In March, the Moscow District Court sentenced him to indefinite hard labor. The janitor was sentenced to twenty years of hard labor.
Fyodor Mikhailovich himself died two years before these events. So he did not know that his novel Crime and Punishment was prophetic.
Old woman lender
Family life at Varvara Mikhailovna did not work out. In 1840, she married a wealthy and influential PA Karepina. But ten years later, her husband died suddenly. Barbara at that time was twenty-eight. Here is what the writer's daughter Lyubov Dostoevskaya recalled: “But, of course, my aunt Varvara was the most unhappy. She married a fairly wealthy man who left her, after her death, several apartment buildings in Moscow. These houses brought her a good income, her children were well arranged and did not lack anything. Therefore, she could provide herself with all the amenities at her age. But, unfortunately, the poor woman suffered disgusting, certainly pathological stinginess. In desperation, she untied the laces of her wallet; the slightest expense made her miserable. In the end, she calculated the servants, so as not to pay her. She never heated her apartment and spent the whole winter in a fur coat; she did not cook; she bought some bread and milk twice a week. There was a lot of talk about this inexplicable stinginess throughout the county. They assured that my aunt Varvara had a lot of money and, like all misers, she keeps it in her possession. ”
And brother Andrei Mikhailovich Dostoevsky wrote in the 28 number of the Moscow Leaf (beginning of 1893 of the year): “Her late husband, although he had a very favorable position as the governor of the office of the Moscow military governor-general (under Prince Golitsyn), was respected in Moscow, but after his death, he left nothing but a negligible pension (almost no less than 200 rubles a year) to his widow. The house in which Mrs. Karepina had so tragically ended her life was her dowry. Possessing strong willpower and non-female energy, the young widow managed not only to raise her children, but also to arrange them, almost without any means and out of pride without any help from anyone. After spending nearly two decades in constant restraint and self-restraint, the deceased became accustomed to prudence and even, apparently, to stinginess. But prudence and even apparent stinginess were allowed by her only in relation to herself, to all those close to her she was all kindness, all generosity. So, she constantly helped and in recent years even kept on her account both her daughter and her numerous family. A lot of other good deeds were arranged by the deceased, which, of course, I will not spread now, in view of the still warm grave of hers. All this does not seem like a condescending stinginess. In conclusion, I consider it superfluous to add that the great Russian writer and thinker F.M. Dostoevsky was the brother of the deceased and, despite her prudence, he loved and respected her very much, not only as a sister, but also as a woman of rare intellect and firm character. ”
But nevertheless, public opinion about it was not good. Neighbors recalled that in her old age, Varvara Mikhailovna was completely closed. She was afraid of any rustling and did not let anyone into the apartment. Moreover, fearing unnecessary expenses, the old woman dismissed the cook and servants. It was rumored that she saw in them thieves who dreamed of picking her to the skin. Such a position will undoubtedly make anyone think that innumerable treasures are hidden in her house. In fact, Kepina had no treasures. But still, potential criminals could profit by twelve thousand rubles in securities, which the old woman had discreetly hidden in various hiding places. Also, Varvara Mikhailovna had a few hundred rubles, which is called "cash". But most of all she was worried about in a couple of hours: the golden pocket ones, left over from her late husband, and her own - old wrist watches, which her husband presented to her.
But the public did not know this. And it was rumored in Moscow that the writer's sister was fabulously rich. One gossip claimed that Varvara Mikhailovna secretly sold some of their apartment buildings for thirty thousand rubles. That was already more than a solid amount.
Strange death
For a couple of weeks, an unpleasant incident happened to Karepina - they grabbed a bag with money and apartment keys on the street. After that, she finally, literally, closed from everyone. That evening, the old woman had a nightmare. She saw herself in a dream naked to the waist, and the upper half of her body was disfigured. Karepina felt that this was a bad omen, warning of a violent death.
In the morning of January 21, the janitor Ivan Arkhipov (he lived in the kitchen of an old woman who was fenced off by a wall with a door) felt the smell of burning. He saw clouds of smoke erupting from under the door leading to Krepina’s apartment. Soon the police arrived. They knocked the door down and found Varvara Mikhailovna’s badly burned body. At a cursory examination of the corpse, a version of the accident was put forward. Like, an old woman accidentally knocked the lamp over on herself, refilling it with kerosene. The investigators were surprised by the fact that the upper part of the body was so badly burned that it was impossible to recognize Karepin. Detectives were hooked and for scattered books and papers on the table. Further more. It turned out that the middle drawer in the desk, as well as the bedside table were open. And the door of the last strongly burned.
After inspecting the room, the police again began to study the body. Soon the version of the accident had to be brushed off. Karepina’s position seemed unnatural, as if she herself had not fallen unconscious, but someone had carefully placed it. In addition, if Varvara Mikhailovna had really accidentally knocked over a “kerosene”, she would have burned her skirt, and not the upper part of the dress. And the skirt was in general not touched by fire. Then it turned out that money, securities and watches had disappeared in the house. All this forced the investigators to put forward the version of the murder.
And the investigative experiment showed that the door leading from the kitchen to the black staircase (it was the police who broke it) could have closed on its own, for this it was not necessary to be on the inside. If you put the hook vertically, close the door, and then lightly hit the lintel, it fell into a loop. So, probably, the criminal thus closed the door behind him, trying to set the murder as an accident.
At number one in the list of suspects was the janitor Arkhipov. A few days after the mistress’s funeral, he began to buy expensive items for himself. Especially stood out leather boots in which he sported on the crowded streets. In addition, Arkhipov now and then began to visit some taverns, and in the company of a woman. Previously, this was not observed. Detectives put a "tick" and began to work on the second option - Fedor Yurgin, who was a frequenter of brothels on Rozhdestvensky Boulevard. Curiously, the police did not realize that these young people were tied. The case and ... banal jealousy helped to know their secret. Yurgin diligently courted one lovely young lady named Anna, to whom another suitor had the looks - Alexander. Because of the girl between them now and then there were conflicts. And the young lady herself did not give any of them any preferences and did not pay attention to their courtship. But ... suddenly she was filled with tender feelings for Yurgin. Anna changed her anger to mercy after Fyodor suddenly bought himself a fox fur coat and began to spend impressive sums on her passion. In addition, Yurgin boasted that he always had with him a whole pile of securities, so, just in case. Alexander could not fail. He did not shoot or drown (the events did not take place in a novel, but in reality), but went to his relative, the detective police agent. He told him about metamormosis of Yurgin. And Fedor was paid close attention.
It turned out that Yurgin came from the peasants of Vladimir district, and in the white stone worked as a seasonal mason. Established the police and the fact of his, though far, but still a relationship with the janitor Arkhipov. Soon Fedor was arrested. During the search of his apartment, money, securities and watches belonging to the late Varvara Mikhailovna were found.
Obsession
Together with Yurgin they arrested Arkhipov. Janitor at the time was nineteen years old. During the interrogation, he behaved pitifully and quickly, as they say, split. Ivan admitted that he did not want the death of the old woman, they say, it was Yurgin who was to blame for everything - it was he who made him commit a crime. Arkhipov also said that his only fault was that, through recklessness and stupidity, Fyodor had once told me about the wealth of Karepina. And killing an old woman became an obsession for him. After all, there was practically no seasonal work left at that time, and the young man was literally aground. Arkhipov repented and that he had deceived the trust of Varvara Mikhailovna, they say, he was the only one she trusted. Karepina knew him all her life, so she took the job and settled in her kitchen.
Arkhipov hoped that he would manage to shift all the blame on the relative, but the plan failed. After interrogation of Yurgin, confrontation with Ivan and a number of investigative experiments, detectives managed to recreate the crime scene. On the twentieth of January, at about nine o'clock yesterday, drunken Yurgin entered the kitchen of Arkhipov. He declared that he wanted to do away with the old woman. Ivan felt sorry for his mistress, so he tried to save her. He knew that as soon as he left the kitchen, Varvara Mikhailovna would go there to close the door behind him. And if she sees a stranger there, she will lock herself up. Thus, Arkhipov would have been able to save her. Saying Yurgin that he needed to leave for a minute (to give someone money), Ivan shouted: “Lady, I'm leaving!”. Then he went to the black stairs and stopped. According to the janitor, he was so scared that his legs would not obey. As always, Karepina appeared, but she did not notice Yurgin, who managed to hide. As soon as the old woman came to the door, he jumped out of his hiding place and began to choke her. During the interrogation, Fyodor recalled: she looked at him so compassionately that he did not hold back tears. However, he did not remove the palm, which tightly closed the mouth and nose of the old woman. Soon Varvara Mikhailovna closed her eyes and slowly sank to the floor. Then Yurgin took a towel and wrapped Kepina’s face around them. Then listened to the heartbeat. And convinced of her death, he began to scour the apartment in search of untold wealth. In the drawers, desk, and chest, Fedor found all her savings, securities, and watches. When nothing was left in the apartment, Yurgin took the glass out of the lamp, poured kerosene on the table and the old woman. Then he carefully laid the lamp on its side, as if it had fallen. In this preparation for the dramatization of the accident were completed. Fedor dragged the half-dead Arkhipov to the apartment and ordered him to set fire to the old woman or the table at two o'clock in the morning, and then go to bed. After this, Yurgin went to celebrate the main change in his life. But Arkhipov was left alone with the corpse ...
At first he lay down on his bed and tried to sleep. But he did not succeed. Then Ivan wanted to kill himself, though he could not find the knife (he lied, the knife was in his own room). Then Arkhipov decided that he would burn with the old woman. With this thought, the janitor waited for the coveted two o'clock in the morning. When the time came, he set fire to the kerosene with a match on the table, locked all the doors (including the one leading from the kitchen to the stairs), hid the keys in his mitten and lay down on the bed. So Arkhipov lay until morning, the fire did not get to the kitchen. Then he decided that it was time to "find" a fire.
Yurgin, instantly rich, lost a sense of reality. He littered money and talked about securities. During a meeting with one familiar petty official, Fedor decided to shikanut what is called before him: he treated himself to vodka and an expensive snack. Then he invited him to "visit the young ladies." The official asked, how do you get so much money? Yurgin proudly replied: “Earned, sir! It's only the beginning! The time will come, we will turn over thousands! ” But not destiny. Fedor was arrested already on December 31. In March, the Moscow District Court sentenced him to indefinite hard labor. The janitor was sentenced to twenty years of hard labor.
Fyodor Mikhailovich himself died two years before these events. So he did not know that his novel Crime and Punishment was prophetic.
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