Analysis: A horrific case of 'disorganized murder?'

...or a horrific case of

By SARA BEN DAVID
Based on the facts that have come to light at this point, it appears that Dmitry Olegovich Kirilik, who is being held in custody for killing the Oshrenko family, did not set out to commit murder. It was not an organized murder, but a disorganized one. In an organized murder the killer premeditates the crime and carefully plans his attack. In these cases, there is often little evidence left behind. The murderer thinks about all the technical details beforehand and is careful not to leave an obvious trace linking himself to the crime. In a disorganized murder, the perpetrator doesn't set out to kill anybody. Instead, from the attacker's perspective, the murder happens accidentally, and after other factors have gotten out of control. Therefore, the events at the scene aren't well thought out and there are often obvious links connecting the murderer to his crime. All the evidence in the Oshrenko case points to this being a disorganized murder, including the fact that Kirilik apparently left the knife he allegedly used in the garbage can and took a shower in the Oshrenkos' home before leaving. It seems that Kirilik entered the Oshrenko home with the intention of robbing the family. He evidently entered the house, approached the grandmother and pressured her to lead him to the family's cash. It is possible that he used force and threatened her if she did not give him the information. Probably convinced she knew where the family's money was kept, Kirilik might have grown frustrated with her refusal to lead him to the cash. His frustration then would have built up, resulting in her murder. He would probably feel the grandmother had "made him" kill her by not providing him with the desired information. According to the "point of no return" theory, there is a point at which a person (criminal or non criminal) can't stop himself or herself from committing a violent act. Either just before or after the murder of the grandmother, the alleged killer reached the point of no return, and felt that to save himself from being caught, he would have to get rid of the rest of the family as well. There were several factors that might have driven Kirilik to rob the Oshrenko family in the first place. In 2007, he was humiliated and fired from the Oshrenkos' restaurant in front of the entire staff, after being caught drinking on the job. Kirilik probably did not think this was a valid reason for his removal. If the tension between him and the Oshrenko family started then, it built even higher as his wife continued to work at the restaurant. The fact that he was being supported by his wife most likely frustrated him and hurt his pride. This, combined with his drinking and addictive gambling, made him desperate for money. As the vicious cycle of gambling, drinking and being unable to support the family continued, he saw the Oshrenko restaurant prosper, as his wife continued to work there. Playing on the tension he already had with the Oshrenko family and desperate for money, Kirilik decided to take his "rightful revenge" on the Oshrenko family by robbing them. Unfortunately, the robbery spun out of control as he lost control over his pressured emotional state and, allegedly, he ended up taking a far greater revenge than he ever intended. The writer is chairwoman of the Department of Criminology at Ariel University Center of Samaria.