According to friends and acquaintances, Khabarov was considered a very likeable, compassionate and helpful man, but had difficulty communicating with girls due to his short stature, slim build and premature baldness.
In September 2004, he was arrested on charges of manufacturing homemade explosives with the intent of selling - investigators said that he had studied the necessary literature and materials from the Internet and he had managed to make a mixture of ammonium nitrate, aluminium powder and minium.
[2] As a result, Khabarov was detained at a facility in the village of Iset, and after spending several months there, he was released with impunity in 2005 - in spite of the fact that a diagnosis determined that he suffered from a superiority complex.
[3] Thinking that his previous accomplices were too cowardly and lacking willpower, Khabarov convinced several colleagues from his job as a security guard to join in instead - in this group, he established strict discipline and enjoyed unquestionable authority, despite his stocky physique and frail appearance.
In order to supply his gang with weapons, Khabarov purchased gas pistols, which he later converted to fire live ammunition and tested them in the woods, where he had set up several arms caches.
In order to destroy incriminating evidence, the pair put wooden boxes around the body and then set them on fire, with Khabarov stealing the dead man's cellphone and laptop.
The victim's tongue was firmly clamped between his teeth and stuck out by 1 cm; his feet were severely plantar flexed; his elbows bent and hands clenched at the chin.
According to investigators, the murdered man remained alive for some time after the electrocution, after which Khabarov and Kochnev struck him in the hyoid area with an unknown sharp object to finish him off.
[2] In the garage, while chatting with Anton, Khabarov showed his GAI badge and claimed that he was being investigated for stealing computer parts - confused by this allegation, he voluntarily allowed for Kharabov and Kochnev to search him.
His identity was confirmed after X-rays of his jaws and teeth were compared with missing persons reports, after which a criminal case was opened and an investigation into his murder was initiated.
The motive for the killings was supposedly homicidal mania, as Khabarov stated that he intended to record the deaths, as he felt euphoric when he saw his victims convulse and suffer during the electrocution process.
Kochnev denied that he was directly involved in the murders, but admitted to being present at the crime scenes, confirmed that Khabarov seemed euphoric from watching his victims suffer and that the shocks were so powerful that the vehicles violently shaked.
Among Khabarov's personal belongings and documents, law enforcement officers found a traffic police certificate with notes on duty in the spring of 2009, as well as a driver's license.
During the checkup it was determined that the ID was not fake and present in all databases, having been issued in 2004, despite the fact that Khabarov had been acquitted by reason of insanity for the possession and manufacturing of illegal weaponry.
Khabarov planned meticulously for all his crimes, and after his arrest, investigators seized a number of handmade devices and walkie-talkies from his garage and apartment, all of which had been tuned into frequencies used by law enforcement.
He also planned to ambush and attack motorists on a road leading up to Yekaterinburg, and to this end, he had purchased a hidden video camera and installed it in the soles of his boots, which he would place by the roadside and observe the passing cars from his computer at home.
Despite their attempts, investigators failed to link Khabarov to any additional murders or disappearances, and he steadfastly denied responsibililty, invoking his right to refuse to make self-incriminating statements.
[11] In early 2023, Khabarov took a job as a security guard at a shopping mall in Yekaterinburg, but was quickly recognized by a colleague who was a former employee at the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
[4] In the conversation that followed, Khabarov admitted responsibility for his crimes and to being treated at a mental institution, but attempted to convince the man that he no longer posed a danger to society.
[10] Prior to this, colleagues at the mall regarded Khabarov as a sociable, erudite person who led a healthy lifestyle, was interested in science, and liked to talk about inventions that could change the world.
[13] Former head duputy of the Verkhnepyshma Investigative Committee Yuri Elantsev questioned the conclusions of the psychiatric examinations, as well as the decision to release Khabarov from the intensive care facility.