He noticed that she wore gold jewellery and, thinking he could sell it for money, decided to follow her to her apartment on Danube Avenue.
Upon collecting all her jewellery, money and mobile phone, he proceeded to sever her breasts and gouge her eyes out, before eventually leaving the premises.
[1] A neighbour later saw him leaving the premises, but after being questioned by police, they could only provide a vague description of the offender, describing him as an unfamiliar man of Asian origin.
[4] About a month after Biktuganova's murder, another taxi driver spotted what seemed to be bloodstains on the back of Ten's car, which he immediately reported to police.
When queried as to why it was in his possession, Ten claimed that he had picked up two young women not too long ago, one of whom forgot her phone on the back seat - as he did not know either of them, he decided that he would just sell at the market instead.
[4] Due to this, he was initially charged solely with her killing, but when Biktuganova's remains were found in April 2006, a DNA link was established between him and biological evidence left behind by the killer.
In 2019, investigators from Saint Petersburg were reviewing old cold cases when they came across the unnamed student murder, noting that it shared similarities with how Biktuganova had been killed and both were last seen at Pionerskaya Metro Station.
Several operatives were then dispatched to Polar Owl to question Ten about the case, and after some time, he eventually admitted responsibility for the crime.
[5] Authorities have since started reinvestigating other cold cases in Saint Petersburg and the surrounding area, as they believe that Ten has likely killed or maimed others.