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Iren Yakovleva-TernerMurderer
Country:
 France |
Content:
- Biography of Irene Yakovleva-Turner
- In the Time of Revolution
- Finding Love and Seeking Revenge
- A Deadly Pursuit
- A Vengeful Act
- The rest is well known.
Biography of Irene Yakovleva-Turner
The Early YearsIrene Yakovleva-Turner was born in 1900 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Her father, a lawyer, was a professor at Moscow University and had become wealthy through stock market investments. He passed away in 1915, leaving Irene and her mother with a substantial fortune.
Growing up, Irene received an excellent education and became fluent in several languages. She developed a fascination with crime literature, particularly the works of serious legal scholars. Despite her unusual interest, her friends didn't pay much attention to it, as everyone had their own quirks.
In the Time of Revolution
In early 1917, Irene met Nikolai Arakelov, a young lawyer. They got engaged shortly after, amidst the political turmoil in Russia. The monarchy had fallen, and the country was now governed by the Temporary Government, led by Alexander Kerensky. Arakelov, known to Kerensky, was involved in various commissions. In September, he was sent on a delicate mission to central Russian provinces. Tragically, Irene's mother passed away just before their departure, leaving her feeling lonely.
During their journey, they were stopped at a station by a group of intoxicated soldiers from a Bolshevik patrol. Arakelov was arrested, and Irene was given the option to continue her journey or separate from him. She chose to stay and witnessed the soldiers executing Arakelov before her eyes. In shock, she was taken to a local prison, suspected of being associated with counterrevolutionary elements. After a week, she managed to escape and made her way back to St. Petersburg. From there, she embarked on the traditional path of Russian emigration: fleeing to the south, evacuating from the besieged Odessa, and a trilogy of wandering to Constantinople, Berlin, and finally Paris.
Finding Love and Seeking Revenge
In 1923, Irene married Count Franz Turner in Paris. Although the Count had estates in Germany, he preferred to live in France. He had connections to secret diplomacy, mediating behind-the-scenes conflicts between European nations. Occasionally, the Count was invited to official receptions, and it was at one of these events that Irene recognized one of her fiancé's murderers in a technical staff member of the Soviet diplomatic mission. This encounter sparked a desire for blood revenge in Irene's inflamed mind. However, she realized that killing one would not reveal the rest of the names. So, Irene began establishing a connection with this man named Sergeyev, aiming to gain his trust. She managed to get close to him and insisted that the Count invite Sergeyev to their home. Sergeyev failed to recognize Irene, which she had anticipated since he was heavily intoxicated during the murder.
Unable to extract the desired information quickly, Irene resorted to a desperate move – she became Sergeyev's lover. During their intimate moments, she repeatedly spoke about her love for strong men capable of decisive actions, framing it as a conversation topic. Eventually, she directly asked Sergeyev if he could kill someone, to which he boasted about his exploits during the civil war. Unsatisfied with his answer, Irene stated that it was not the same, as killing in the heat of war was different from taking the life of an unarmed person who looked at you with a plea for mercy. She emphasized that a true person of strength would kill without hesitation. Sergeyev, oblivious to her intentions, shared a story about an incident where he and his comrades killed a disguised officer despite his pleas for mercy.
Gradually, Irene managed to extract the names of the two accomplices in Arakelov's murder: Mal'tsev and Tushkevich. Sergeyev could only recall the first name and patronymic of the third accomplice, Stepan Nikolaevich. He had lost contact with them but knew that Tushkevich had become involved in the trade union movement in Moscow.
A Deadly Pursuit
Irene's next step was to talk to her husband. She informed him that while fleeing, she had left family jewels worth a considerable sum in Russia. Part of it was hidden with acquaintances, and the rest was entrusted to a deaf-mute nanny whom she believed to be trustworthy. This story was entirely fabricated but provided a perfect pretext for her trip to Russia. Initially hesitant, the Count was convinced by Irene's argument that traveling together might draw the attention of the Cheka-NKVD (Soviet security agency) and could jeopardize their chances of obtaining Soviet visas, particularly due to his sympathies for the Russian Military Union, an anti-Soviet monarchist organization to which he had made donations.
Using his connections, the Count obtained a German passport for Irene, under the name Zinaida Blumendorf. She traveled to Berlin and, posing as an employee of an American charity foundation, joined a delegation from the Comintern. In May 1926, she arrived in Moscow.
Soon after her arrival, Irene located Tushkevich. Posing as a journalist collaborating with socialist publications, she managed to extract the names of all the participants in Arakelov's murder. It turned out that Mal'tsev also worked in Moscow, while Sergeyev (Arakelov's namesake) had risen to high ranks in the Cheka but had become completely paralyzed and was residing in a suburban sanatorium.
A Vengeful Act
Irene began with Arakelov's namesake. Visiting the sanatorium, she introduced herself as his relative and, waiting for the medical staff to leave her alone with the patient, offered him a poisoned candy. The agony only lasted a few seconds, and the staff attributed his death to the periodic deterioration of his condition. They believed it was due to a stroke caused by excessive excitement from the encounter with his "relative."
On the same day, upon returning to Moscow, Irene invited Tushkevich and Mal'tsev to meet in the evening. She told Tushkevich that she was writing a book about the civil war and wanted to collect as many testimonies as possible from its participants. The meeting was scheduled at one of the few surviving commercial restaurants. While Mal'tsev went to the restroom, Irene asked Tushkevich to go to the orchestra and request a specific romance for her. While the men were absent, she skillfully added poison to their glasses. This time, it was a different type of poison that took effect after some time, rather than instant death. Half an hour later, Tushkevich began to feel unwell, and Mal'tsev, rushing to call an ambulance, lost consciousness on the way. Irene pretended to faint as well. When medical assistance finally arrived, Irene regained consciousness and weakly suggested that it might be food poisoning caused by spoiled products. She refused to go to the hospital, claiming that she felt strong enough to make her way home. She provided the doctors with a fictitious name.
Later that night, Irene left Moscow for Berlin. Upon meeting her husband, she informed him that she couldn't find the jewels, suspecting that someone had discovered them earlier.
Returning to Paris, Irene took her husband's revolver, wrote a farewell letter, and headed to the café "Le Lutece."
