Seven people are dead following what authorities describe as a murder spree that stretched across Florida on Wednesday, spanning approximately 200 miles from Fort Lauderdale on the Atlantic coast to Sarasota County on the Gulf side.
The suspect, identified as Russell Kot, 51, of Fort Lauderdale, was found dead from what police believe to be self-inflicted gunshot wounds at the final crime scene in Sarasota County.
The tragic sequence of events began in Fort Lauderdale’s Victoria Park neighborhood, an upscale residential area, where police responded to a well-being check on the 500 block of Northeast 15th Avenue. There, officers discovered two victims: Larisa Blyudaya, 46, and her son, Ben Azivov, 18, both residents of Fort Lauderdale.
Property manager Joe Askerberg, who managed the home where the first victims were found, described Blyudaya as a woman who had recently relocated from Chicago. According to Askerberg, Blyudaya, her son, and Kot all resided in the same home, each occupying separate rooms. He characterized Kot as quiet and reclusive.
A neighbor reported seeing an individual enter the residence on Tuesday morning, though he thought nothing of it at the time. The significance of that observation became apparent only after authorities arrived at the scene.
The investigation then shifted to Sarasota County, where police were summoned to a gated community in the Amberlea neighborhood near Proctor and McIntosh roads. At that location, authorities discovered five bodies, including that of the suspect. The four additional victims were identified as Olga Greinert, 49, Florita Stolyar, 66, Anatoly Ioffe, 61, and Yaroslav Blyudoy, 39.
According to investigators, Kot had a romantic relationship with one of the Fort Lauderdale victims, though authorities have not specified which one. The connection between Kot and the victims found in Sarasota County remains under investigation.
Matt Binkley of the Sarasota Sheriff’s Office assured the public that all persons involved in the incident have been accounted for and there is no ongoing threat to community safety.
Sarasota Police have stated they are not aware of any mental health crises or history of violent behavior associated with Kot prior to these incidents. The property manager expressed bewilderment at the tragedy, questioning how someone could sustain such rage over a four-hour drive between crime scenes.
Both the Fort Lauderdale Police Department and Sarasota Police continue their investigation into the full circumstances surrounding these killings. Homicide detectives from both jurisdictions are working to establish a complete timeline of events and determine what motivated this cross-state rampage.
The investigation remains active as authorities work to understand the connections between all parties involved and what precipitated such a devastating chain of events.
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