Viktor Ilyin is the man who committed the most famous assassination attempt on Brezhnev. The event took place in the winter of 1969, fortunately, it ended, albeit not without losses, but happily for the Secretary General. Who is he and where is he from? Why did Ilyin try to kill Leonid Ilyich?
An inconspicuous lieutenant of the Soviet Army, who has no complaints in the service, does not cause rejection among his colleagues, who suddenly became the most famous terrorist in the history of the USSR. What could have pushed Viktor Ilyin to such a terrible, one might say, desperate act? Did he have accomplices?
Biography of the failed killer Brezhnev
Viktor Ilyin, who tried to kill the General Secretary of the USSR in 1969, was born at the end of December 1947, in Leningrad. The boy's family was a heavy drinker, the parents did not pay attention to the child, as a result they were deprived of the right to raise him. Little Vitya was first transferred to the so-called "baby house", from where he was taken by a childless couple.
Nothing is known about the people who raised the boy, who gave him an education. It is only known that he graduated from a secondary school, entered a topographic technical school in his hometown of Leningrad, after graduation he was drafted into military service in the SA.
In the technical school where Viktor Ilyin studied, there was a military department. In the diploma, the guy indicated not only his profession, but also his military rank - he graduated as a junior lieutenant. This gave Ilyin some advantages in the service. He had the right to live at home with his foster mother and grandmother along her line, leaving for a military unit as if to work.
Junior Lieutenant Viktor Ivanovich Ilyin did his military service in unit No. 61 (geodetic detachment) near Leningrad, in the city of Lomonosov. The part was classified, and now many experts are surprised at how an inexperienced guy managed to steal a weapon and leave the duty post without permission.
The attempt on Brezhnev - the motives and the implementation of the plan
Experts believe that the main motive that pushed Ilyin to attempt on Brezhnev's life was his psychological state. After the crime, it became known that the boy's foster family was negatively disposed towards the current government and the regime as a whole. He himself was withdrawn, he had no friends. The reason for this was that at the age of 10 he learned that his parents were adoptive, while his mother and father were drunken alcoholics.
In addition, shortly before the assassination attempt, Ilyin's girlfriend broke off relations with him, directly pointing out that she did not see any prospects in life with him. And the guy, deeply hurt by this attitude, told her: "You will hear about me again!"
Viktor Ilyin thought out his future crime in detail. At the end of January, the celebration of the cosmonauts was planned in the capital of the USSR. The heroes were supposed to ride it as part of Brezhnev's motorcade. Naturally, thousands of Soviet people also wanted to express their respect to them, at least by waving their hands to the cars in which they were. Ilyin decided that this was the best opportunity to loudly declare himself by killing Brezhnev.
On the night of January 21-22, he took the opportunity to steal military weapons from his post in the unit, left its location and went to the capital. In Moscow, the guy had an uncle, with whom he stayed. He explained his visit to him simply - he wanted to see, like the others, the astronauts.
Ilyin stole a policeman's uniform from a relative, disguised himself, and entered the ranks of those who were in the cordon. When the General Secretary's motorcade was passing next to him, Ilyin opened fire, and he fired with both hands at once. For Brezhnev, he took another person - Georgy Beregovoy. The shooting lasted only 6 seconds, but during this time the driver of the car where the cosmonauts were traveling died, Beregovoy, Nikolaev, and the escort motorcyclist were wounded.
Arrest and punishment
The failed killer of Brezhnev, the most famous Soviet terrorist, was arrested immediately at the scene of the crime. Experts are sure that there was no escape in his plans, he only needed fame, albeit obtained in this way.
After the arrest of the shooter, searches were carried out in the apartments of his mother and uncle, during which the police found notebooks with the offender's notes. There was no direct indication that he was preparing an assassination attempt on the General Secretary. Viktor Ilyin only made notes that he needed to find out the time of the flight to Moscow, buy a ticket and the like.
In Soviet times, such incidents were usually not made public. But Ilyin chose the only correct path for fame - he committed a crime in front of a large number of "spectators".
Later, the press covered all the news related to him - the arrest, the place of detention pending trial, the decision of the meeting. Viktor Ilyin received an unusual punishment for such a grave crime - he was placed in a psychiatric hospital in Kazan, where he remained until 1988. Thanks to the efforts of the foster mother, Ilyin was later transferred to the Leningrad clinic.
Where is the terrorist Viktor Ilyin now
The adoptive mother never left Viktor Ilyin. Over the years, she has sought to transfer him to Leningrad. She succeeded only in 1988. Moreover, the mother found a way to get the case reviewed, and as a result of the trial, Ilyin was released from arrest in 1990.
Viktor Ilyin's lawyer not only proved that the offender had served his sentence in full and was not dangerous to society, but also helped him get an apartment, sick leave compensation for 20 years, and formalized social benefits in the form of a pension.
The failed killer of Brezhnev is still alive, lives in solitude, claims that he does not regret what he did. Ilyin's personal life never got better. But he is only worried that an innocent person died due to his fault - the driver of the car at which he fired.
