After 16 years in prison for the murders of a lawyer and a journalist, former Russian neo-Nazi activist Yevgeniya Khassis is free and talking

In early 2009, Yevgeniya Khassis helped Nikita Tikhonov murder attorney Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova. At the time, Khassis and Tikhonov were members of the Combat Organization of Russian Nationalists, a neo-Nazi group based in Moscow. According to investigators, Tikhonov shot Markelov after Khassis informed him of the lawyer’s movements. Tikhonov also killed Baburova, who was standing next to Markelov during the attack. In 2011, Tikhonov was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murders, while Khassis received 18 years, later reduced to 17. In late November 2025, after serving 16 years, Khassis went free. In her first interview since her release from prison, Khassis spoke to journalist Ksenia Sobchak about her relationship with Nikita Tikhonov and how she nearly enlisted in the Russian–Ukrainian war. For the first time, Khassis also admitted guilt in Markelov’s murder (though not in Baburova’s). Meduza highlights the key moments in her interview with Sobchak.

Release from prison

I understand that. I’m not a good person, but I’m still here, still breathing. […] All of us sit and watch events unfold around us. And yes, people tend to want the villain to suffer — to have limbs torn off, eyes gouged out, tortured like it’s the Middle Ages. […] But I’m human, just like anyone else. This was my day, the one I’d spent 16 years waiting for. So forgive me, but on that day, I let myself feel happy.

Russia’s war against Ukraine

I can’t say if this [war] is right or wrong. What I do know is that I support the people who are out there right now, risking their lives and leaving behind all the everyday comforts. They could’ve stayed home, gone on with their lives, and kept sipping their coffee. But they chose to be there because they believe they’re doing something for all of us. Maybe that’s true, maybe not — people can argue about it however they like. But that’s how they see it. And turning our back on them doesn’t sit right with me. To me, the “special military operation” is really about what the people involved are feeling.

It’s no secret that inmates were being invited to join the “special military operation” — mostly men, but also women. We got those invitations, too. They told us we’d be helping with medical work. I agreed to do it. First, we spoke with the prison administration. Then some higher-ups came by, talked to us, and reviewed our files. After that, people from the enlistment office showed up. We signed contracts and began our prep. They issued us our gear and took our photos, but one day, they called us in and just said, “That’s it, you’re not going anywhere.” In the end, none of us went — not a single one.

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Nikita Tikhonov

We haven’t talked in a very long time. We basically stopped having any real contact after 2012, when we were taken to Moscow for more questioning in the Goryachev case. We were able to talk while they were transferring us. That was the last time we talked. It didn’t go the way a girl would hope. I loved Nikita very deeply — in a way that was a bit unhealthy and kind of obsessive. That relationship was my whole life. For me, everything that happened was this big, tragic love story, with revolutionary banners waving high overhead. For me, Nikita was, more than anything, someone I loved. His feelings for me were different. He was entirely driven by ideology.

After that, we didn’t talk for 10 years. In 2022, we had a video conference when the European Court of Human Rights made its final decision on our case, and later we had a hearing at Russia’s Supreme Court. That’s when something happened that completely changed how I saw Nikita. The screen came on, and he said, “Hi.” I answered, “Hi.” Someone from the prison service asked him about me: “Who’s that?” And he said, “Oh, that’s my accomplice.” For me, this whole story was never about criminals, and hearing that word was just humiliating. Anyone else could have said it, but not him.

Guilt and remorse

I acknowledge my guilt in participating in the murder of Stanislav Markelov. According to the court’s ruling, I am not guilty of killing Anastasia Baburova. I accept that.

Markelov was a lawyer and public figure who was very outspoken back then about his ideological views. He stood out as a prominent representative of the so-called liberal scene at the time. With his views on the Chechen campaign, it was like he was asking for it [to be murdered].

Nastya [Baburova]’s story is a bit different. She had nothing to do with political struggle, subcultural battles, or men settling scores. What happened to her was the tragedy of a young woman who, by chance, found herself at that moment beside this man, Markelov. And yes, maybe if I had said he wasn’t alone, none of this would have happened, at least not to her. I didn’t say it. I know that. I’ve turned this question over in my mind, and I’ve lived with it. And I’ll probably carry it for the rest of my life, because when it comes to Nastya, there really isn’t another way to look at it.

The prison system does what it’s supposed to. I know exactly why I did what I did. Over sixteen years, I’ve gone over my actions thousands of times — I had more than enough time. I regret what I did. I know exactly what I was punished for, where I slipped up, and what mistakes I made in my life.

I’m definitely not a good person. Honestly, I’m probably a bad one. But I regret what I’ve done. I regret it for many reasons — including the tragedy that happened to Nastya Baburova. That’s my burden, and I’ll carry it.