Man Sentence To Life Imprisonment For Killing Parents Over Dog Dispute

A son who confessed to killing both of his parents in a row about his dog has been sentenced to life imprisonment.

Sergey Koudryavtsev, 48, phoned the police three days after fatally stabbing his parents with a knife in May this year.

He previously pleaded guilty, and yesterday was sentenced to two life sentences with a minimum term of 26 years (concurrent for both counts), for two counts of murder at the Old Bailey.

Koudryavtsev had returned to his parents’ home in West Kensington two years ago after the break-up of his marriage. He moved in with his pet Mastiff, Enzo, who was aging and suffering from health problems. Koudryavtsev believed that his parents did not treat the dog as their equal by leaving windows open, which he believed to worsen Enzo’s condition.

In his rage and frustration, he stabbed his parents to death in their home and then spent three nights sleeping rough before making a call to the police from a pub in Chiddingfold, Surrey, confessing to the murders.

Olcay Sapanoglu, a Senior Crown Prosecutor, said: “The tragic death of Tatiana and Vladimir Koudryavtsev was the result of pent up anger and a three-month fantasy of Sergey Koudryavtsev to see his parents dead.

“While he lived rent-free with his parents, disagreements had been common, especially over differences of opinion about the superiority of humans over animals. This led to Koudryavtsev’s thoughts of violence as a way to remedy what he saw as injustices against his dog.

“He had been practicing with a number of combat style knives found at the house, along with trying exercises such as martial arts, that he would eventually use to end the life of his parents.

“In stark contrast to his violent actions, he was concerned that the arrival of the police at the pub where he made the call to the police may inconvenience them.

“Most chilling of all perhaps is that Koudryavtsev admitted that fatally stabbing his parents felt natural. He has now been given two life sentences for his crimes.”