Russian-Born Mother Stranggles 8-Year-Old Son To Death Over Ukraine Invasion Fears

A mother from Wisconsin with ties to Russia has been charged with murder on Tuesday, April 5, after she reportedly killed her 8-year-old child due to fears of him being sexually assaulted or killed due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Forty-one-year-old Natalia Hitchcock allegedly strangled her 8-year-old son Oliver and attempted to drown her other child, who is 11 years old, after her mental state deteriorated due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which reportedly made her more paranoid and angry, according to WISN.

“[Her husband] said that he felt the war between Russia and Ukraine amped up Hitchcock more than ever and that she started to drink alcohol,” a complaint on the matter said.

Between the two incidents, she became paranoid as she asked her husband to buy survival gear for their family, including a camping stove, guns, and knives, as well as asking to fly back to Russia in order to visit her mother.

It culminated in one night when her husband reportedly was awakened by their older son, who told him that their younger son Oliver was strangled by Hitchcock, before finding her walking around the house with a knife saying that she would kill them all. She also stabbed herself in the chest with a knife, ABC 7 reported.

“We're talking about crimes of absolute violence. She's also committed these crimes as alleged against her two children,” District Attorney Joel Urmanski said.

Hitchcock reportedly confessed to the killing during questioning, as well as acknowledged her guilt after the death of her son Oliver was relayed to her by officers, according to the Daily Beast.

“She said that she believed [Oliver] would not have been able to defend himself if he had gotten abused and she thought it better to kill him rather than watch him be abused. She said that she placed both hands around [Oliver’s] neck and squeezed as hard as she could until [he] stopped breathing,” the complaint said.

She is currently imprisoned with a $1 million bail set by the judge.