Because of this, the pair began arguing regularly, and eventually broke up, with the woman returning to Volgograd and Zubov leaving the farm for good.
[3] Angered and heartbroken by the break-up, Zubov frequently hung around his ex-girlfriend's home on Udmurtskaya Street, where she lived with her mother.
[3] After calming down a little, Zubov rummaged through his pockets and found a knife, with which he proceeded to stab the victim directly into the heart, killing him instantly.
After killing the occupant, he rummaged through the dacha in search of money and valuables, stealing 1,800 rubles and an expensive wristwatch.
[3] Realizing what he had done, Zubov dug up a hole near the train station and then buried the corpse there, before quickly returning home.
When asked why he had cut off the genitalia of his initial victims, Zubov claimed that he had done it to "simulate a serial killer's handwriting" and confuse the investigators.
[3] After being found sane by a preliminary psychiatric exam, Zubov was brought to trial, where he recanted his confessions and proclaimed that he was innocent.
It reported that he had been released from prison as part of a mobilization drive spearheaded by the mercenary Wagner Group and was likely killed in action during the Battle of Bakhmut, with his date of death being listed as 20 April 2023.