Jealous fiancé ‘kills his bride-to-be by dousing her in petrol and setting her on fire because he thought that she was flirting with other men’
- Anastasia Kovaleva, 22, was allegedly set alight by fiancé Vitaly Chaikovsky, 28
- He doused her in petrol and then set her alight to scare her into not dumping him
- Chaikovsky is believed to have feared that his partner was flirting with other men
A woman has died after she was allegedly doused in petrol and set on fire by her jealous fiancé who accused her of flirting with other men.
It has been claimed that Anastasia Kovaleva, 22, was set alight by Vitaly Chaikovsky, 28, in the city of Zaporizhia, southern Ukraine on July 2 because he wanted to scare her into not dumping him.
Chaikovsky and Anastasia had a bitter argument which ended with her leaving their apartment.
She hoped that Chaikovsky would have calmed down while she was away but he is alleged to have instead gone to a nearby petrol station
Anastasia Kovaleva, 22, was set alight by Vitaly Chaikovsky, 28, in the city of Zaporizhia, southern Ukraine on July 2
He picked up a bottle of petrol and waited for Anastasia to return near the entrance to their apartment block.
When she approached, Chaikovsky allegedly doused her in petrol and set her on fire with his lighter.
She immediately began screaming in pain as, according to witnesses, she turned into a fireball.
Chaikovsky then ripped off his T-shirt and tried to put out the fire that had enveloped his bride-to-be.
According to the Mirror, one neighbour, named Valentina, told local media: ‘We heard horrific screams. Someone was shouting, ‘A woman is burning!’
‘My husband grabbed a canister with water and I grabbed a blanket and we raced to the scene.
Anastasia suffered horrific burns to 90 per cent of her body and died yesterday despite desperate medical attention
Chaikovsky allegedly doused her in petrol and set her on fire with his lighter after laying in wait for his partner to return to their apartment block
Police found him at the scene, sitting on the ground while staring at his hand, which were covered with burns (pictured)
‘We managed to put out the victim and called emergency services.’
However, Anastasia suffered horrific burns to 90 per cent of her body and died yesterday, despite desperate attempts to save her life.
Her fiancé was arrested at the scene after police found him sitting on the ground and looking at his hands, which were covered with burns.
Chaikovsky was given medical attention and taken into custody before allegdely confessing to the crime.
A friend of Anastasia said she loved her fiancé and wanted to marry him – but he was jealous and suspicious of her
Chaikovsky and Anastasia had a bitter argument which ended with her leaving their apartment
He said at court: ‘I did not want to hurt her. I wanted to scare her and make sure she would not dump me.’
A friend of Anastasia said she loved her fiancé and wanted to marry him.
However, she added: ‘Vitaly was constantly jealous of her. He read every message on her phone. He was always nervous and suspicious when she was chatting with her male friends or acquaintances.’
Chaikovsky’s case is expected to now be treated as murder, after he was initially charged with attempted murder.
He faces up to 15 years in prison if found guilty.