This man was nicknamed "the demon of death", the most cruel killer, one of the main executioners in world history. Such unflattering titles were earned by Vasily Mikhailovich Blokhin, a major general, an employee of the Soviet state security organs. Of the numerous executioners of that time, it was he who was the "record holder" in terms of the number of murders. During his "activity" the main Kremlin punisher personally exterminated more than 15 thousand people. And according to some sources, the number of victims at the hands of Blokhin reached 50 thousand.
The theme of the brutal Stalinist repressions often suggests links to the concentration camps in Siberia (GULag). But few people know that tens of thousands of people did not live to see him, ending their journey on execution sites and execution rooms.
History shows that about 60% of all shootings were carried out in Moscow. After the "troika" (quick interrogation, a short imprisonment and a sentence without investigation), the man was executed. There were no more than 15 “shock workers of bloody labor” in the entire capital. This number is due to the fact that there were few real specialists for such work. It was necessary to have a strong and invulnerable psyche, skills, dedication to work and extraordinary caution. Even the closest relatives of the executioner should not know what their relatives were doing in the NKVD. Most of the inquisitors did not live for half a century, drinking or losing their minds.
Blokhin Vasily Mikhailovich became a real professional - Stalin's trusted executioner, personally, as already mentioned, who shot more than 15 thousand innocent people. It was he who took the lead in the rating of “Stalinist executioners-record holders”. The second place is taken by the captain of the Soviet special services - Pyotr Ivanovich Maggo. Behind him, there are 12 thousand human lives. And the third place in the list of domestic murderers is given to Nadaray Sardion Nikolaevich - the colonel of state security, the head of personal security L. P. Beria. On his account there are about 10 thousand executions.
Brief biography of Blokhin
Vasily Mikhailovich was born in 1895 in the Vladimir province. Being from a peasant family, the young man at the age of 15 mastered the profession of a builder and began to work as an apprentice in Moscow. During the First World War, he received his first military rank of non-commissioned officer. He took part in the hostilities on the German front. Wounded, he returned to his homeland and continued to work at the local military registration and enlistment office. In 1921 he was appointed commandant of the NKVD. For 27 years (1926-1953) he was the permanent commander of the death penalty. Without looking up from the main business, he graduated from the capital construction institute. Blokhin turned out to be the only one from the group of executioners who lived to retire in his right mind. He was awarded the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner of Labor, the Order of the Red Star and the Badge of Honor. Many were jealous of the executioner, but no one suspectedthat his hands are stained with the blood of thousands of those executed. It is known that the officer participated in the "high-profile" executions of such individuals as Mikhail Tukhachevsky, Ieronim Uborevich, director Vsevolod Meyerhold, writer Isaak Babel, Iona Yakir and others. Blokhin even took a direct part in the execution of his former boss, General Commissioner for State Security Nikolai Yezhov.
After a dedicated job as a "special executor", in 1926 Blokhin took over the leadership of the "firing squad." In one night, he personally shot up to 200 people, setting an example for young employees. The man smelled of blood and gunpowder. To hide the smell of carrion, all the executioners literally doused themselves with cologne.
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Memories of the servant Vasily Blokhin
There was a servant in the luxurious Moscow apartment of the Stalinist executioner. The maid's name was Shura. When the girl came to visit her native village, besides stories about the rich atmosphere of the apartment, she told about the cruel disposition of the owner. Shura was always surprised by one interesting detail: sometimes intelligent people came into Blokhin's house, whom no one else saw.
The maid also said that Blokhin had a passion for thoroughbred horses. After his death, more than 650 books on horse breeding were counted in his personal library. Such a cruel man had a beloved wife, Natalya. She never found out what her husband was doing. A few years after the death of her husband, the woman died and was buried near him in the cemetery of the Donskoy monastery.
Mass execution of Polish officers
In his work, Blokhin showed himself to be a completely different person. So, in the spring of 1940, influential NKVD officials headed by Vasily Mikhailovich arrived in Kalinin. More than 6 thousand Polish prisoners had to be executed. Some of the executioner's colleagues recalled that he shot exactly in the head of the victim, preferring the German "Walter", as it overheated less and was highly reliable.
Blokhin's special group, or special “firing squad”, consisted of employees of various units. However, all of its workers were engaged in the protection of the Soviet leaders, including Stalin, and in combination carried out regular executions of "enemies of the people."
Historians note that Blokhin approached the execution thoroughly, like a doctor preparing for a surgical operation. He put on a black leather jacket, long gloves, put on a leather apron on top and pushed the cap to the side. Then he checked his pistol, looked in the mirror and entered the room. Shooting up to 200 people a day, the executioner felt great. In between murders, the fanatic stared at the pictures of horses in books.
The most scandalous in Blokhin's biography, according to historians, is the mass murder of prisoners of war of the Polish army. According to some information, about 7 thousand officers taken prisoner by the Red Army were shot in Katyn then. The Poles were taken to the "execution room", and then their bodies were transported by trucks to the village of Mednoe, located 32 kilometers from Kalinin. There, excavator workers dug ditches for corpses, and then covered them with earth.
On the first day of executions alone, 343 Polish citizens were executed. The night was not enough for the executions, and the executioners were forced to resume work in the early morning. Later Blokhin ordered to deliver no more than 250 people to execution. This went on every night until all the prisoners were destroyed. The man was escorted through the corridor to the "red" room, where propaganda slogans hung and a bust of Lenin stood. The room was small, only 5x5 meters. Here the prisoner's data was checked for the last time: name and year of birth. Then he was marked on the death sentence list, his hands were tied and taken to the “execution room”. Blokhin even compiled a memo on how to "competently" kill. The officer always shot tangentially in the neck so that the bullet would exit through the mouth or eyes. Then less blood flowed out of the person. But if an inexperienced executioner hit the back of the head, more than one liter of blood came out. Therefore, Blokhin always taught the gun to the young employees of his team himself. After the bloody procedures, Vasily Mikhailovich recommended filling the murder site with sawdust so that they would absorb the blood of the murdered.
Before the executions, the officer forbade the use of alcohol, but each night after the execution ended with noisy feasts. After the execution of all Poles, the chief executioner organized a farewell "feast" for murderers, and then received a bonus in the form of a monthly salary. Some of the killers were rewarded with a bicycle, and some with a gramophone.
After the death of JV Stalin, the executioner retired. However, he was stripped of his military rank and all awards. He died in February 1955. Blokhin was buried near the crematorium, where the bodies of his victims were burned - in the large cemetery of the Donskoy Monastery.
Stalin always appreciated reliable "executors" capable of anything. He was never afraid that the executioners, who shot in the back of the head of others, were constantly behind him as guards. And after the death of the leader, no repressions were carried out for the punishers. Many of them passed away by their own death, in high ranks. Blokhin received all his awards. In addition, he was buried with military honors and to this day is revered by the security forces. There is a beautiful headstone with a portrait on the grave of Vasily Mikhailovich. However, someone regularly writes only one word in red paint on his memorial plaque: "Executioner".