On 28 March 2022, 19-year-old Polina Dvorkina went to kindergarten No. 31 in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, where she planned to kill the male students. Dvorkina was apprehended and no one at the school was hurt. Earlier that day, she had shot and killed her father at their home.[1] It is believed to be the first crime in Russia committed on the basis of misandry.[2][3][4]
On 28 March 2022, at 4:00 a.m, Dvorkina's drunken father threatened her, shouting: "I gave birth to you, I will kill you". When her father entered the room, she hit him twice on the head with a dumbbell, causing him to fall and start bleeding. She then shot him with a 12-gauge hunting rifle, killing him.[5] Later that day, she went to kindergarten No. 31 on Menzhinskogo Street, hiding a shotgun under her coat. The guards recognized her because she had come there a few days before to apply for a job.[4] She was able to enter the building under the pretext that she needed to pick up a child. At about 14:00 she entered the kindergarten building. In the "caramel" group at that time, 17 children aged 4 to 5 years old were sleeping during the quiet hour.[6][7][8] The teacher noticed a rifle under Dvorkina's coat and shouted and started resisting her.[8] During the arrest, Dvorkina fired a shot and the bullet hit the wall.[9] She was apprehended by one of the kindergarten employees, a physical education instructor.[10] The caretakers held Dvorkina until law enforcement arrived.
Perpetrator
Dvorkina at a court hearing
Polina Platonovna Dvorkina (Russian: Полина Платоновна Дворкина; at birth – Sofia Olegovna Kechina; born in 2002)[5][11][12] in the family of the mother of a well-known Krasnoyarsk journalist and Oleg Kechin, director and co-founder of a publishing center.[8] Polina became interested in the ideas of radical feminism at the age of 12.[13] She studied the works of foreign authors of this movement and hated men. She shaved her head, spoke negatively about males, and called for violence against boys.[14] At the trial Dvorkina stated that since childhood her mother and father did not take care of her, she was left to herself, her parents drank heavily and did not pay any attention to her. They did not pay attention to her hobbies.[13] Shortly before the crime, Dvorkina changed her surname, first name and patronymic to Polina Dvorkina in honor of the American feminist writer Andrea Rita Dworkin. She wrote a feminist manifesto, which she sent to foreign media outlets, in which she declared the need for "women to commit violent acts and murders against men". According to her, she wanted to use her manifesto to protest against the "exploitation of women". In the fall of 2021, Dvorkina purchased a hunting shotgun.[13][15]
In prison
As of 2025, Dvorkina is serving her sentence in Krasnoyarsk colony No. 22, as well as undergoing treatment with a psychiatrist and seeing a psychologist. She has been diagnosed with "polymorphic personality disorder". While serving her sentence in the colony, Dvorkina was employed as a seamstress. She participates in cultural, educational, and sporting events. She also took part in patriotic events dedicated to Victory in the Great Patriotic War and the Immortal Regiment campaign.[15]
Legal proceedings
A criminal case was opened against Dvorkina under articles on attempted murder of two or more persons, including minors, and for murder. The investigation established that Dvorkina, who was a radical feminist, planned to kill the male children in the kindergarten.[16] As part of the investigation, checks were organized against officials of the kindergarten and the company providing security services for the kindergarten.[17] A psychological and psychiatric examination found Dvorkina to be sane.[8] At the time of the attack on the kindergarten, Dvorkina was wearing a T-shirt with hostile writing in English against men.
In April 2023, the court fined Dvorkina 10,000 rubles (~US$115) under the administrative article on incitement of hostility or hatred towards the "male sex".[18] The court found that she had sent a feminist manifesto to the media, which included calls for women to commit violent acts and kill men.[19][20]
In July 2023, the court sentenced Dvorkina to 17 years imprisonment with 2 years restriction of liberty and ordered outpatient treatment by a psychiatrist at the place of incarceration.[4][7][21] A claim in favor of Dvorkina's mother in the amount of 1 million rubles (~US$11,000) as moral compensation was also satisfied.[22]
In her last statement, Dvorkina stated:
"Now the thinking has changed...there are women in the detention center who have children and they love them...I began to appreciate families and small children...it becomes shameful when women in the detention center talk about their children...I realized that one should strive for family, for goodness, love...it is shameful that at the moment when the citizens of the country are defending the motherland, I committed crimes...".[23]
Dvorkina appealed against the court's judgment. On 31 January 2024, the court left the verdict against her unchanged.[24]
The security guard on duty at the kindergarten on the day of the attack and her boss, the director of the security company, were punished under Article 238 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (providing services that do not meet safety requirements) and sentenced to 2.5 and 2 years in a general regime colony. In March 2024, the female security guard was released on parole, and later that year, the director of the security company was also released.[15]
Aftermath
The prosecutor's office said that such a crime has not been seen in the history of Russia, where a mass shooter was motivated by feminist ideology.[10][4]
Chairman of the Investigative Committee Alexander Bastrykin has put the investigation of the criminal case under control.[25]
Decree of the Russian Federation on the awarding of educators of Krasnoyarsk
Russian President Vladimir Putin awarded medals "For Bravery" to three Krasnoyarsk educators who stopped an attacker. The corresponding presidential decree was published on the legal information website.[8][26]
See also
Another school-attack incidents that happened later, in the same year:
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