A Moscow journalist who was reported missing last week was killed and dismembered by her husband, a cook who co-founded a legendary hangout in the capital, investigators said.
Alexei Kabanov admitted to committing the murder after fragments of the body of Irina Cherska, including
head and limbs, were found in a car he borrowed from a friend, the Investigative Committee said.
Kabanov, 38, said he strangled Cherska, 39, in a flash of domestic violence Jan 3 and then dismembered her body and stashed it in the car, hoping to get rid of it later.
Meanwhile, he launched a broad effort to locate her, complete with emotional posts on his Facebook page.
Kabanov was detained and faces up to 15 years in jail on murder charges. There will also be a check of his sanity.
He is also likely to be stripped of parental rights to Cherska's three children, aged between two and seven, children's ombudsman Pavel Astakhov said.
Ukraine-born Cherska worked as a freelance radio editor who co-hosted shows on psychology on Komsomolskaya Pravda radio station.