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Publications / Media / Malakhov 2026/08/03 (part 1)
« Last post by Axelrod on September 05, 2026, 03:30:09 AM »Malakhov (August 3, 2026)
Andrey [MALAKHOV] in the next episode in the summer of 2026 I've been silent for 30 years! New details in the Dyatlov case (2026-VIII-3):
[–] Good evening everyone! You're on the Rossiya TV channel. We continue our sensational investigation into the tragedy that has haunted the world for 67 years. New details and facts have emerged in the case of the deaths of nine hikers led by Igor Dyatlov.
As a reminder, on the night of February 1–2, 1959, hikers died under mysterious circumstances on Mount Khalat-Syakhl. All the participants in the expedition were connected to secret, closed organizations.
Alexey [KOSKIN]: The further you dig, the more inconsistencies you find. Many of them already had access to classified information.
Maxim [EMELYANOV] (the actor playing Krivonischenko): I found it very interesting that at 20, he made a radio receiver. It was something unique, by today's standards.
[–] There were more than 50 theories about his death. From attacks by wild animals and revenge by the indigenous Mansi people for the desecration of their relics, to the involvement of foreign intelligence agents.
[PROSHKIN]: There are a lot of inconsistencies. For example, it's curious that the bodies of some of the victims were autopsied in the presence of the Sverdlovsk Regional Prosecutor. Prosecutors of that level had never participated in autopsies, but here they are. Why is that?
[–] Investigator Lev Ivanov, who led the case, learned the truth but was forced to remain silent under threat of a court martial. The KGB seized all documents from his investigation. The case was classified "secret." But Ivanov managed to hide all the film from the cameras of Georgy Krivonischenko and Semyon Zolotaryov. As it would later turn out, these tourists were KGB agents.
[VICTOR]: Investigator Ivanov appealed to everyone in Russia to forgive him for what he could not do. He told everyone about the events at Dyatlov Pass with the tourists.
[XENIA]: And you remained silent for so many years!
[VICTOR]: You shouldn't have spoken… And now, let them do whatever they want. I'm not afraid anymore, I'm not afraid of anything.
[–] The revelations of our hero, Viktor Iosifovich, 67 years later, have caused a real stir. After the program aired, the editorial office began receiving letters and calls from all over the country and abroad. People asked questions related to the tragedy at Dyatlov Pass. The main one was about the tourists' tent. Who cut it and why?
[VICTOR]: The tent was the same, only the location had changed. It was impossible to do it standing; they had to crouch. So they cut it however they found most comfortable.
[XENIA]: Were the scissors big? Special ones, I guess.
[VICTOR]: Yes. I should have taken them. I'd give them to you right now…
"Our TV program features relatives of the deceased participants in the Dyatlov expedition, who have never given interviews, as well as relatives of the most enigmatic participant and KGB agent, Semyon Zolotaryov. They will meet in our studio. And new details from Viktor Iosifovich, which everyone was afraid to talk about. A sensational interview!"
One of the directors of the Dyatlov Memorial Foundation, Alexey Koskin, is back in our studio today. Alexey Alexandrovich! Of course, that interview caused such a stir… What shocked you most about his revelations?
[KOSKIN]: What shocked me most was that he even spoke up. We'd been looking for people for a long time and couldn't understand why this man was so old, and everyone was keeping quiet…
[–] He's 89 years old.
[KOSKIN]: This is the first person to speak up.
[–] And what do you think? Could that investigator, Lev Ivanov, who investigated the case, have deliberately left some clues behind? It's clear he couldn't say anything. But the letter he published, about it being a UFO, and some other things.
[KOSKIN]: Yes, I think he was investigating and knew a lot. He was definitely forbidden from talking about it. But he, being an honest and decent man, tried to do something… He hid the film and some other things. He was trying to give us some clues, so we could understand what happened there.
[–] For those who missed what Viktor Iosifovich said last time, we'll show a small fragment of his revelations.
[XENIA]: And you kept silent for so many years!
[VICTOR]: You couldn't talk… And now – let them do whatever they want! I'm not afraid anymore, I'm not afraid of anything. I'll tell them: tell the KGB colonel not to blab. It was he who blabbed, not me. I'm just repeating it.
[XENIA]: There were so many different versions circulating in the media. Some of them, it seems, are downright plausible.
[VICTOR]: The Dyatlov Pass story. I learned about this story from my friend, Boris Danilovich Chudny. He was a prosecutor in the city of Verkhoturye in the Sverdlovsk region. He learned this from investigator Lev Ivanov, who was investigating the criminal case.
Investigator Ivanov appealed through my friend to everyone in Russia, asking them to forgive him for what he could not do otherwise.
He wanted people to forgive him in the Christian manner after his death, to remove the burden from their souls.
He asked to tell me in more than 40 years. He couldn't tell me anything before then. But he told my friend everything about all the events that unfolded at Dyatlov Pass with the tourists.
VOICE: And where did you get this information if it's classified?
[VICTOR]: Because I communicate with the KGB. Here are my manuscripts about this story that happened at Dyatlov Pass. I copied it all down in a notebook like this… (applause in the studio).
[–] Grandpa's clearly not as simple as he tries to appear. And today he'll reveal new details. And most importantly: who, why, and for what purpose did they cut up the tent? While preparing for the broadcast, we found this footage with you, Alexey Alexandrovich, footage from 20 years ago, where you were on an expedition.
Yudin was still alive there. It's interesting that Yudin appears here in the conversation, trying to say he has the information.
There's information about other repositories; it's preserved. Somehow, the conversation is going on, and suddenly he gets offended. Since you don't want to listen to me, I won't tell you anything! You're all so smart here…
What do you think? Even back then, if you'd all opened your mouths and started listening, would he have told us anything?
[KOSKIN]: I don't think he knew everything. He knew a lot, he had some guesses… However, that same Viktor Iosifovich could have known more than Yuri Efimovich. He was offended, because that was just his nature.
[–] Well, yes, he died five years after this video was recorded. He spent his entire life grieving over the deaths of his friends. Let's recall again what our hero, Viktor Iosifovich, told us about investigator Lev Ivanov's forensic examinations in the previous program. And how Ivanov's daughter, who was on the program, reacted to these confessions.
[VICTOR]: The KGB secret department came to Ivanov and summoned him to work. They came, took all the investigative materials that contained the truth, and said it was a natural phenomenon, an avalanche, etc.
For this reason, the KGB says: "Close the case!"
He had already found out what killed them, but he couldn't say it under threat of execution.
Lev Ivanov learned all the details at the "Bar" café in Sverdlovsk from a KGB colonel. The colonel's name was Anatoly Vasilyevich Ilyichev. They were on good terms, like distant relatives. Yes, he suffered greatly over this, until the end of his days.
When Ivanov spoke with the commander of the helicopter regiment, he broached the subject and said: "It's so painful that those tourists died."
And this commander told him that he remembered when he was urgently asked to allocate a helicopter and send eight soldiers to capture fugitive criminals.
He saw that when they landed, they were all wearing gas masks. This already indicated that something was wrong here!
[IVANOVA]: There were film strips there. They had to be destroyed, naturally, since the case was classified. But he kept them for himself. And in Kostanay, he hid them in a storage room at home and said somewhere around 1996, probably: "Soon I'll be gone. The films will be lying right here."
He probably wanted someone to investigate this matter. He felt great guilt towards the relatives of the dead boys, because he hadn't been able to finish the case. He said at that moment: "I had a family, I couldn't do otherwise!"
[VICTOR]: Ivanov himself realized it was a weapon and approached them with a request. They analyzed it. But the KGB confiscated everything that could indicate… He had already found out what killed them, but he couldn't say under threat of execution.
[–] Alexandra Lvovna! How do you feel today, listening to him?
[IVANOVA]: Actually, I want to say that he's right. My father had such an examination done. We had relatives in Ufan (the Ural branch of the Academy of Sciences). We often went there, and they visited someone back then. He arranged for the examination, I think, and he did it. The results probably showed that there was radiation. These documents were confiscated, I believe, and are stored somewhere.
[–] Alexandra Lvovna Ivanova, daughter of investigator Lev Ivanov, has joined us again. After that program, did you try to find these relatives and find out anything?
[IVANOVA]: Hello, studio! I contacted the relatives who remained there, but they also don't know anything because it was so long ago. After the case was closed and classified as "top secret," my father continued working on other cases.
But at the time, he wanted to advance his career further, because he felt he had such potential that he could do even more.
[–] Alexey Alexandrovich told us a shocking story, also related to random witnesses to the events that took place at Dyatlov Pass. Let's hear it!
[KOSKIN]: Pilot Gennady Patrushev participated in the search for the Dyatlov group on a Yak-12 aircraft. He was one of the first, he said, to find the tent, seeing it from an airplane. He saw bodies near the tent. He also claimed it was a girl, her hair was scattered in the snow… And this contradicts the official version.
But he was also actively trying to figure out what happened at Dyatlov Pass. Why did the hikers die? His friend Sergei Misharin, a KGB captain at the time, helped him with this. He was young, active, and promising.
Unfortunately, in May 1961, two years after the Dyatlov group tragedy, Gennady Patrushev crashed his Yak-12. His wife claims he died under strange circumstances. He flew the wrong plane; they gave him another one. There was some kind of malfunction. According to his widow, they deliberately sent him on a faulty plane. Accordingly, he never returned from that flight.
And his friend, KGB officer Sergei Misharin, shot himself in a bathhouse shortly after Gennady Patrushev's death. It's rather strange that both of these men were actively pursuing this topic and died one after the other.
In our time, the renowned explorer Vladimir Rykshin led an expedition in search of Patrushev's plane, a Yak-12. They learned from a local resident that there were remains of the plane near Mount Chistop. They went there with good equipment, including metal detectors.
They found the remains of the plane—interesting, mysterious remains. They had quite high background radiation. They were even frightened and moved away from the area because the background radiation was really high.
[–] How would you comment on this? A chain of random events, or could they have eliminated even a KGB officer who knew too much?
[LUZAN] (historian of the secret services): The audience here and those who will be watching us on television are grateful to you and the esteemed experts who didn't abandon this tragedy halfway through—not just the tragedy of the Dyatlov group, but also the tragedy of the other people involved.
But at the same time, you've completed many tasks. But I think it's impossible to complete the task. Do you know why? Viktor Iosifovich is giving detailed information, but, with all due respect, this is again a retelling of someone else's words. The only evidence is documents.
[–] I want to show you a fragment of Viktor Iosifovich's latest interview. New information about these spheres that everyone saw. The balloons that could have caused the Dyatlov Pass tragedy.
[VICTOR]: I didn't name a single element that was used in the tests there. This lithium capsule stored heat. And while the plane was flying to Otorten an hour later, the temperature of this lithium dropped. At first, it was still normal. And when it got there, the valves triggered as it descended on the balloons.
And the lithium began to escape and meet with hydrogen. A chain reaction began, first ejecting a polyethylene balloon. It inflated to 3 meters, then burst, and the reaction escaped into the atmosphere. The balloon was up to 12 meters high, and the temperature near the center was 41.2°C.
[XENIA]: Were there experiments in the Wild Goose Valley too?
[VICTOR]: Yes, that's exactly the area where the weapons were tested. It's between Dyatlov Pass and Otorten, in the valley and Wild Goose Lake. And that's where they dropped these capsules over the valley between Otorten and Dyatlov Pass. The capsule was at an altitude of 350 to 500 meters, and then it flew like a parachute. The plastic bag that was on top of the capsule, like a parachute, exploded at an altitude of 90 to 120 meters above the ground.
[–] How does he know all these details? And in such detail?
[LUZAN] (historian of the secret services): Let's start with the fact that all this is a retelling of the people he listened to. To talk about this, you need technical training. And he said the key phrase: "Now I'm not afraid to talk about it!"
Let's go back 67 years. A completely different atmosphere. They're testing, as I understand it, a very serious weapon. Apparently, some kind of emergency occurred, as the military say. And these guys, Dyatlov's friends, they became victims of circumstance. That is, they were in the wrong place at the wrong time…
[–] Okay, now a short commercial. Next, what happened to the tourists' tent? Who cut it down and why? Viktor Iosifovich will tell you all about it. And also our experiment in the studio. Stay tuned!
Good evening again! One of the most high-profile cases of the 20th century, which is still unresolved. The death of nine tourists from Igor Dyatlov's group on the night of February 1-2, 1959. New sensational details about what happened 67 years ago. There's a lot that's new today.
Oleg Nikolayevich Arkhipov provided a recording of a telephone conversation with geologist Eduard Khodorchenko, right? Who, just shortly before his death, also told Oleg Nikolayevich about the spheres at Dyatlov Pass.
[ARKHIPOV]: You said that you were nearby in 1959.
[KHODORCHENKO]: Yes, they called it Iolotan there in Russian. We worked there. We were sitting there after our shift. I was playing chess, and I glanced out the window – a huge, huge red sphere.
My first impression was, why is the moon so big? Then such discomfort. I feel like this is wrong. Then I look: the sphere is gone. The moon is over there, the sphere is a kilometer away. You see? That's when the planes started flying. We only contact the expedition every 24 hours with our radio.
Then, a few days later, they tell us that the students are missing. The Mansi start to say they cut up the tent with knives. Then, when the search began, we were already in the know. Our radio operator was from the expedition. There were no planes left, no flights.
I've flown a lot and am familiar with the pilots' maps. A red square means flights are prohibited in that area. What's going on? And, he says, how do we know? It's right in that area, you see, where the disaster happened. And all those balloons were heading exactly from there. The theory back then was that they were testing some kind of bomb that would destroy oxygen in the air. I'm remembering it all now, connecting the dots. I'm deeply convinced that this disaster is connected to the development of some new technology, new weapons, new types of weapons.
[–] What year is this?
[ARKHIPOV]: In the spring of 2015, I met with Eduard Khodorchenko. He came to the presentation of my new book on the Dyatlov tragedy. And he emphasized that it was military aircraft flying low over that square. And they've already connected it all.
[–] Yes. But the question is also about the fact that today, for the first time, Vladislav Georgievich Karelin, Igor Dyatlov's searcher and friend, decided to share new details after the sensational interview.
[KARELIN]: There was some kind of flying object. It looked like some kind of fireball. This fireball created a variety of impressions.
Georgy Atmanaki, also a member of our group, also witnessed this phenomenon with me. He had the impression, and he wrote it down in his interrogation, that something was falling to the ground. That's the impression it made on him. And even though I said something like a meteorite, it still stuck in my head. I saw such a phenomenon on February 17th. Maybe the Dyatlov group saw the same thing on February 1st. That's why I asked Maslennikov: "Find out, please find out! Was there a missile launch of some kind?"
Prosecutor Ivanov clearly wrote that the disaster came from the air.
We didn't rush into recruiting anyone. Typically, a group is formed six months in advance, sometimes a year in advance. If I'm going on a difficult expedition, I know who to take, reliable people. And I've always had a good selection of people. And I would never have taken a complete unknown. And for some reason, Dyatlov took Zolotaryov. What influenced Dyatlov? I don't know.
Prosecutor Romanov asks me during interrogation: "You say they wouldn't be scared by a gunshot. But what if two people come with guns?" I say: "They wouldn't be scared." "What if five people come with guns?" I say: "They wouldn't be scared either." What if 10 people?
I say: "If 10 people, maybe they would be scared."
He says: "You write that down!" He made me write it down. I wouldn't have written it down if he hadn't made me.
They've already formed some kind of theory. He was apparently tasked with checking, in case I said anything about the military personnel. He was probably trying to squeeze some information out of me…
[–] This man was silent too! How old is he now?
[KOSKIN]: 90 years old.
[–] You have to wait 90 years to start talking between the lines.
[KOSKIN]: He says he participated. And Viktor Iosifovich says he heard from someone. Or maybe Viktor Iosifovich just doesn't want to tell us that he participated too?
[ARKHIPOV]: Are you referring to some search party that existed before the official search?
[–] I'll tell you more. Viktor Iosifovich—he's not really Viktor Iosifovich. We'll find out today. His name is different.
But first, let's invite the relatives of Dyatlov, the deceased participant in the expedition, who was 25 years old. Alexander Kolevatov. This is his niece, Tatyana Alexandrovna, and his great-nephew, Alexander Shevchenko. This is their first time on television. Hello. Good evening!
Sasha! As I understand it, you only found out who you're related to in mid-life, right?
[SHEVCHENKO]: Yes. I was 18.
[–] And what did your aunt Vera Sergeyevna say about this whole story?
[SHEVCHENKO]: She always told the same story, that it was some kind of weapons test, apparently. Because the government's attention wasn't just for nothing. And those balls, where did they come from? And she also said she saw the bodies, and they were a dark red, brick-colored, the color of red brick. And as a chemist, she said this indicated that these were indeed chemical burns.
[–] So, a man-made disaster. Was that your family's version of events?
[SHEVCHENKO]: Yes. She mentioned a weapons test. Perhaps there was a spill of either oxidizer or fuel.
[–] I was told you went to Yekaterinburg to visit the grave.
[SHEVCHENKO]: Yes, a year and a half ago.
[–] What emotions did you experience?
[SHEVCHENKO]: Oh, of course, we were a little shocked that it all happened. Plus, it's still not forgotten. I was recently near UPI. Now it's called URFU (Ural Federal University). A monument was erected there, I think, about two months before our visit, in memory of this tragedy. And so it's nice that people remember it.
[–] Tatyana Alexandrovna! Thank you for agreeing to appear. This is your first time on television. I'd like you to meet Yevgeny Antropov. He played Alexander Kolevatov, your relative, in the series. What do you remember? What did Aunt Nina tell you about Sasha's identification?
TATYANA [SHEVCHENKO]: It turns out I was brought there in 1959, when I was almost 10 years old. They buried me in June, when the tragedy had already happened. I remember those graves, the two-story houses, all of it. And they told me something later, when I was more mature, in 1971. They identified Sasha only by a birthmark somewhere on his leg. The rest of him was brick-colored.
[–] Is it true that the funeral was so semi-secret?
TATYANA: I can't tell you that…
ALEXANDER: As far as I know, the authorities didn't want a funeral procession or any publicity in general. I believe they were buried in two stages – first those found a month later in March, and then the fourth.
[ARKHIPOV]: It must be said that Rimma Sergeyevna possessed enormous civic courage. Her interrogation report is still astounding today. She posed very serious questions to the investigators. And you were at the morgue on Bolshakova Street. I was there, too, at the autopsy table where all this took place. Just after this, the clothes of the last four, including Sasha Kolevatov, were sent for radiation testing. Levashov, Sverdlovsk's chief radiologist, performed these tests. I can say that Alexander Kolevatov's heart muscle was severely damaged. (Shouts in the studio)
He fought to the last. We believe he cut the clothes off the dead by the cedar to keep the wounded Lyuda Dubinina warm, who couldn't breathe. He fought to the last. So your relatives can only be proud.
[–] Zhenya! Didn't they conduct the tent experiment in the series?
[ANTROPOV]: We didn't conduct the experiment. We filmed the scene. But we just cut it straight away. Those who were escaping from it. I'm listening to what they're saying now. As a representative of the cultural profession, I'm sorry that we don't engage in such research on a large scale, that we don't tell and don't try to tell this truth, but turn it all into a vaudeville, especially on such a topic. What Oleg Nikolayevich is now saying about Alexander's character traits, which I didn't know about, which would have been very helpful to me, but there was nowhere to apply them. We're too constrained by specific dramaturgy. I really miss that.
[–] I know that you also want to know everything and put all the i's in what happened. And today will be this interview that we've gathered here to watch. For the first time in 67 years, Viktor Iosifovich explains what happened and why the tent was cut. Attention!
[VICTOR]: The tent was the same, only its location had been changed. The special forces had carried it 27 meters to the northeast. They couldn't carry it any further because of the strong wind. And then they set up the tent, piled up some snow, and made it look like it was there.
That's absolutely not true. This is a new location. It's staged… Where it stood, there were actually traces of people running. And you could find blood in the snow from the blows…
[XENIA]: Why was the tent cut open from the inside? And the cut was so wide. Why couldn't they just leave that tent? Or was that also staged?
[VICTOR]: No, the tourists did it out of desperation. A person stops breathing and dies. All nine of them rush out through one door to quickly escape and get out into the light. They're hoping things will be better there.
They started cutting the tent. It was impossible to do this standing up; they had to bend over. So they cut however they felt most comfortable. They slipped out through the holes. The weapon was having an effect. One person handles it one way, another another.
[XENIA]: This cut—wasn't it staged? Did it really happen?
[VICTOR]: It was done with scissors.
[XENIA]: So it wasn't a knife?
[VICTOR]: A safety razor, the kind that twists. They took the blade and cut with it. And they cut with scissors, too.
[XENIA]: Were they some kind of big scissors? Special ones.
[VICTOR]: They were scissors. I should have taken them with me. I'd give them to you right now.
[XENIA]: Then tell me, where did you get these scissors?
[VICTOR]: I found these scissors near the cedar, stuck in the tree.
[XENIA]: And when did you find them? Excuse me, under what circumstances was this?
[VICTOR]: I walked from the site of the old tent, as they carried them down to the cedar, they carried all the dead. I decided to follow the same path they took. When I approached the cedar, there was a tree nearby with these scissors stuck in it.
[XENIA]: What made you think these were our tourists' scissors?
[VICTOR]: I thought they were the tourists' scissors because a friend told me they used scissors to cut the tent.
And here they were cutting the foot wraps, these 220 cm long foot wraps. They cut them in half, 80 cm long, with knots at the ends—for carrying the radio, battery, and other heavy equipment. They cut these windings. They arrived after the death, and they stuck these scissors in there and left them.
[XENIA]: You mean the soldiers took the scissors?
VICTOR: Yes. They cut the windings for carrying heavy equipment. And so they wouldn't throw them in the snow, so they could be seen, they stuck these scissors in a tree.
[–] Vadim Anatolyevich! How do you think he knows such minute details? It feels like he's an unknown participant in the expedition!
Vadim [VERVAN] (retired General Staff Colonel): My opinion is this. The fact is that none of us present here today are eyewitnesses to this tragedy personally. But we have at our disposal the deductive method of Sherlock Holmes. What theories can we immediately rule out?
We can probably rule out the presence of extraterrestrial influence. If it was an extraterrestrial phenomenon, then research methods evolve over time, and this site would still be being investigated with new methods.
Furthermore, why is all this still classified? And surely there's some parallel case where everything is written exactly as it is. The secrecy remains because it's still relevant today.
As for the existence of this kind of super-weapon, as described to us by the person who bears witness to these events. Here, one could say that there are things that can be taken with doubt. Not all of us are scientists, and some may simply make technical errors in their reasoning.
[–] And this tent that's here today, as I understand it, is a miniature replica of Dyatlov's tent, right?
[KOSKIN]: It's about half of Dyatlov's tent. His tent was sewn together from two similar tents. Plus, there was a small insert, 40 cm, if I'm not mistaken. But the tent material is the same.
[–] Zhenya! You want to try cutting the tent from the inside with a safety razor and scissors, like you did back then?
[KOSKIN]: That's a dangerous experiment. You could cut yourself.
[ANTROPOV]: You could wrap the razor…
[–] Okay, come on! You'll help then.
[ANTROPOV]: Thank you. Okay…
[KOSKIN]: Now I'll demonstrate everything.
[–] Zhenya wanted reality. They sent him straight to the tent.
[KOSKIN]: There are scissors, there's that very razor. We found it.
[ANTROPOV]: Yes, yes, yes. Yes, I know that. I've been thinking about it. It's clear that the state of the effect is very important there. But piercing it, I think, would be easier. Although no… I'm probably lying.
[KOSKIN]: So, look, we've drawn here, roughly according to the criminal case, the cuts that were made. From here and here. We need to repeat a similar cut.
[ANTROPOV]: Okay, let's do it.
[KOSKIN]: It works! And then I continue down, and I continue down, and I continue down.
[ANTROPOV]: It works.
[KOSKIN]: And everything's wonderful, and easy, and quick, right?
[ANTROPOV]: And even the seam is coming out well.
[KOSKIN]: And even the seam is coming out well. Let's try making this cut using scissors. Can we cut it through with scissors? Oh, we can.
[ANTROPOV]: It's more fun with scissors.
[KOSKIN]: Okay, that's it, stop!
[ANTROPOV]: We can even rip it open. That is, it's possible.
[KOSKIN]: We succeeded. The experiment can be considered a success.
[–] Now one more short commercial. Later in our program, our hero will share new sensational details. And also the most mysterious, the oldest participant in the expedition, Semyon Zolotaryov. Dyatlov took him on the expedition literally a couple of days before departure. After the tragedy, rumors circulated about Zolotaryov's son, Sasha, who was taken away in an unknown direction by his mother. All the details: where is Sasha and how the Dyatlov group died? In a few minutes.
Good evening again! The death of nine tourists from Igor Dyatlov's group on the night of February 1-2, 1959. Viktor Iosifovich is back in the spotlight. Our hero, who remained silent for 67 years, today reveals new sensational details. Before going to commercial, if you just turned on your televisions or returned from gardening, we conducted an experiment with a tent. This is exactly the material Dyatlov's tent contained.
Could they have cut the tent with a razor and scissors? As Viktor Iosifovich explained. We confirmed that, despite the thick material and their panic, it was possible. The question remains, why didn't they have a knife?
[ARKHIPOV]: The knife story is actually quite interesting!
[SHEVCHENKO]: I think they used whatever was at hand.
[ARKHIPOV]: They cut with a knife.
[SHEVCHENKO]: The knife is somewhere deep in the backpack.
[–] It also seems more logical to me if they cut with a knife.
[ARKHIPOV]: They cut the tent with a knife. This was confirmed by the examination conducted by Henrietta Eliseevna Churkina from April 3 to April 16, 1959.
[SHEVCHENKO]: If we believe Viktor Iosifovich, the soldiers took the tent with them.
[ARKHIPOV]: They did write a report to Moscow on March 23, in which they said that the tent had been cut from the inside with a knife. But this raises a question. How could they have known this at the end of March if Churkina began her investigation in Sverdlovsk on April 3rd?
There is evidence that the tent or one of its parts was examined in advance. Perhaps the military did this.
[–] Let's show you! Alexey Alexandrovich! You managed to chat online with Viktor Iosifovich. And these are the questions you asked him. Attention!
[KOSKIN]: Dear Viktor Iosifovich! I have several questions for you. I hope you can remember and answer them.
Question 1. These balloons, which, as you said, were filled with gas, and the military tested them. And after they flew away, how did they search for them? Were they disposed of somehow? Or was they not searched for at all? Do you know anything about this?
[VICTOR]: I only know one thing. When that terrible event occurred—the tourists' deaths—the KGB took measures to clear the entire area of all shell casings and other traces of human remains, all traces of blood. They removed it all. I won't tell you where they were taken for disposal. I don't know.
[KOSKIN]: Thank you! And one more question. During the tests of these balloons, besides the Dyatlov group, were there any other fatalities, including local residents, prisoners, or animals? Do you know anything about that?
[VICTOR]: There were no other casualties besides the tourists. There were no human casualties. But there were animal deaths. Wolverines, bears, and deer perished there, and everyone near the site where the weapon struck—they cleaned everything up and threw all the animals into the stream to speed up their decomposition. So there's no one and nothing nearby. There might have been some further away, but no one was looking for them there. And so, they cleared away everything near that area.
[KOSKIN]: One more question. It might not seem strange, but have you heard anything about the soldiers who participated sifting the snow with those large sieves after the launches of those balloons and capsules?
[VICTOR]: They didn't sift the snow; they simply removed and disposed of all the capsules within sight. There was no need to sift the snow.
[KOSKIN]: You said that the capsules they tested there contained some kind of toxic substances. So, do you know where the radiation on the clothes and bodies of the dead tourists came from?
[VICTOR]: It was the capsule that exploded, and there was a chain reaction. And the powder that remained on the tourists' clothes was a sediment left behind by the explosion.
[XENIA]: So, we can say that radiation was present on the tourists' clothes.
[VICTOR]: Yes, they were all contaminated with radiation!
[–] Let's invite another participant in our program to our studio. This is one of the directors of the Dyatlov Group Memorial Foundation, Oleg Rybakov. Good evening! How do you like Viktor Iosifovich?
[RYBAKOV]: I want to say that Viktor Iosifovich has a very interesting perspective. You can't say he's lying or has forgotten something. Everyone has their own position, you understand?
[–] But today you're here to talk about Semyon Zolotaryov, as well as his son Sasha, who's missing. I know you're looking into this. There's another death in the search for this Sasha.
[RYBAKOV]: Yuri Evgenievich Yarovoy, a journalist for the newspaper "Na Smenu," spent his entire life searching for Sasha. And then, information surfaced that he hadn't been taken abroad, somewhere like Germany. His trail disappeared near an Ossetian village.
And just imagine, a road between two mountain villages, a car passes there once every two weeks. He's driving calmly—and then, bam, the car suddenly hits a cliff and flips over. He's dead. His wife was seriously injured—she also died. Their son fractured his skull in the backseat, but thank God he survived. The strangest thing is that a trace of paint was found on the side of his overturned car. From another car. It was assumed that this was a murder disguised as a traffic accident.
[–] Let's recall the details Viktor Iosifovich gave on the last program about Zolotaryov's role in this story.
[XENIA]: Nine people went on the hike. Among them were Zolotaryov and Krivonischenko. Am I correct in assuming they were KGB agents?
[VICTOR]: They were KGB agents. It could have been anyone the KGB trusted. Kolya Thibeaux-Brignolle, his crime was that his parents lived in France and frequently criticized the Soviet leadership. That's why they were specifically keeping an eye on him! And it was Krivonischenko who was keeping an eye on him.
Zolotaryov had a listening device. The KGB was listening in on everything they said. He went to eavesdrop on the entire group, on everyone's conversations, including that Frenchman. And those who know the locations of military installations and everything else, to prevent such talk. Back then, the KGB was monitoring everyone, monitoring everything they said. There were secret military facilities. And they wanted no one to say anything unnecessary! That was the whole point. Let's say one of them says, "I know that they produce secret weapons at this factory, and what kind." And they start telling him that I was at the factory, that my brother told me, or that someone else worked there. But you can't talk about that! That's why they were monitoring. And whatever they said, the KGB would then check the entire conversation from beginning to end.
[XENIA]: And you can tell why Zolotaryov went with them on that expedition… It's clear that the guys there worked at special factories. Krivonischenko was actually an accident liquidator in a secret unit.
And Zolotaryov went on that expedition with a wiretap, simply to assess the situation, whether they were patriots or not, that they weren't saying or discussing anything unnecessary. Is that what he was going for?
[VICTOR]: Yes, just to eavesdrop, so there wouldn't be any word about classified facilities.
[–] Oleg! What do you think of these details from Viktor Iosifovich?
[RYBAKOV]: I think Viktor Iosifovich knows much more than he's letting on. That is, he's not saying everything.
[ORLOVA]: But it seems to me that he periodically speaks on behalf of the person who was there. Then, after a while, he remembers, comes out of that state, and begins to speak as if retelling someone else's story. And then again… These transitions happened several times. Especially when they were talking about the scissors, there was a clear transition. So I think he says exactly as much as he thinks is necessary. And when questions are asked, he answers unimportant ones in great detail and to the point. And to the questions that are truly important, he answers on a completely unrelated topic. So, he's not answering that question.
[RYBAKOV]: He might be hiding something.
[–] As I understand it, the main question journalists have already asked is: where did Zolotaryov's son, Sasha, disappear to? His son, Sasha, from his marriage to Tamara Burgach? His sister, Lyudmila, was in the studio and said that Zolotaryov's mother took Sasha from kindergarten and disappeared.
She's still looking for him. Let's hear what Oleg Rybakov told us.
[RYBAKOV]: Tamara Burgach is Semyon Zolotaryov's common-law wife. She worked in a secret design bureau, and her boss was Ivan Ilyich Schotchikov. She begins an office romance with him.
Ivan Schotchikov says: "I don't need Sasha. Why is he here? I'm not going to feed you all." And she decides to get rid of Sasha.
And then the story gets shrouded in mystery. As a researcher, I was constantly monitoring any information about Semyon Zolotaryov's son. And, you know, I once came across this quote from Lyudmila, Tamara Burgach's eldest daughter.
Once, when asked where they had taken Sasha, she said, "Due to financial difficulties, my mother gave her son Alexander to the mother of her first common-law husband." And who was her first common-law husband? Konstantin Khromov. And she has an excellent relationship with his mother.
So, she took little three-year-old Sasha away to live peacefully with her new partner, Ivan Ilyich Shchetchikov. Sasha grew up in the city of Pushkino in the Azerbaijan SSR. Today, that city is called Bilasuvar.
[–] Tomorrow on our program, we'll continue this story. Our correspondents have gone to these addresses. Also, a continuation of the interview with Viktor Iosifovich. What's his real name? And where is Sasha? Stay with us! |
Andrey [MALAKHOV] in the next episode in the summer of 2026 I've been silent for 30 years! New details in the Dyatlov case (2026-VIII-3):
[–] Good evening everyone! You're on the Rossiya TV channel. We continue our sensational investigation into the tragedy that has haunted the world for 67 years. New details and facts have emerged in the case of the deaths of nine hikers led by Igor Dyatlov.
As a reminder, on the night of February 1–2, 1959, hikers died under mysterious circumstances on Mount Khalat-Syakhl. All the participants in the expedition were connected to secret, closed organizations.
Alexey [KOSKIN]: The further you dig, the more inconsistencies you find. Many of them already had access to classified information.
Maxim [EMELYANOV] (the actor playing Krivonischenko): I found it very interesting that at 20, he made a radio receiver. It was something unique, by today's standards.
[–] There were more than 50 theories about his death. From attacks by wild animals and revenge by the indigenous Mansi people for the desecration of their relics, to the involvement of foreign intelligence agents.
[PROSHKIN]: There are a lot of inconsistencies. For example, it's curious that the bodies of some of the victims were autopsied in the presence of the Sverdlovsk Regional Prosecutor. Prosecutors of that level had never participated in autopsies, but here they are. Why is that?
[–] Investigator Lev Ivanov, who led the case, learned the truth but was forced to remain silent under threat of a court martial. The KGB seized all documents from his investigation. The case was classified "secret." But Ivanov managed to hide all the film from the cameras of Georgy Krivonischenko and Semyon Zolotaryov. As it would later turn out, these tourists were KGB agents.
[VICTOR]: Investigator Ivanov appealed to everyone in Russia to forgive him for what he could not do. He told everyone about the events at Dyatlov Pass with the tourists.
[XENIA]: And you remained silent for so many years!
[VICTOR]: You shouldn't have spoken… And now, let them do whatever they want. I'm not afraid anymore, I'm not afraid of anything.
[–] The revelations of our hero, Viktor Iosifovich, 67 years later, have caused a real stir. After the program aired, the editorial office began receiving letters and calls from all over the country and abroad. People asked questions related to the tragedy at Dyatlov Pass. The main one was about the tourists' tent. Who cut it and why?
[VICTOR]: The tent was the same, only the location had changed. It was impossible to do it standing; they had to crouch. So they cut it however they found most comfortable.
[XENIA]: Were the scissors big? Special ones, I guess.
[VICTOR]: Yes. I should have taken them. I'd give them to you right now…
"Our TV program features relatives of the deceased participants in the Dyatlov expedition, who have never given interviews, as well as relatives of the most enigmatic participant and KGB agent, Semyon Zolotaryov. They will meet in our studio. And new details from Viktor Iosifovich, which everyone was afraid to talk about. A sensational interview!"
One of the directors of the Dyatlov Memorial Foundation, Alexey Koskin, is back in our studio today. Alexey Alexandrovich! Of course, that interview caused such a stir… What shocked you most about his revelations?
[KOSKIN]: What shocked me most was that he even spoke up. We'd been looking for people for a long time and couldn't understand why this man was so old, and everyone was keeping quiet…
[–] He's 89 years old.
[KOSKIN]: This is the first person to speak up.
[–] And what do you think? Could that investigator, Lev Ivanov, who investigated the case, have deliberately left some clues behind? It's clear he couldn't say anything. But the letter he published, about it being a UFO, and some other things.
[KOSKIN]: Yes, I think he was investigating and knew a lot. He was definitely forbidden from talking about it. But he, being an honest and decent man, tried to do something… He hid the film and some other things. He was trying to give us some clues, so we could understand what happened there.
[–] For those who missed what Viktor Iosifovich said last time, we'll show a small fragment of his revelations.
[XENIA]: And you kept silent for so many years!
[VICTOR]: You couldn't talk… And now – let them do whatever they want! I'm not afraid anymore, I'm not afraid of anything. I'll tell them: tell the KGB colonel not to blab. It was he who blabbed, not me. I'm just repeating it.
[XENIA]: There were so many different versions circulating in the media. Some of them, it seems, are downright plausible.
[VICTOR]: The Dyatlov Pass story. I learned about this story from my friend, Boris Danilovich Chudny. He was a prosecutor in the city of Verkhoturye in the Sverdlovsk region. He learned this from investigator Lev Ivanov, who was investigating the criminal case.
Investigator Ivanov appealed through my friend to everyone in Russia, asking them to forgive him for what he could not do otherwise.
He wanted people to forgive him in the Christian manner after his death, to remove the burden from their souls.
He asked to tell me in more than 40 years. He couldn't tell me anything before then. But he told my friend everything about all the events that unfolded at Dyatlov Pass with the tourists.
VOICE: And where did you get this information if it's classified?
[VICTOR]: Because I communicate with the KGB. Here are my manuscripts about this story that happened at Dyatlov Pass. I copied it all down in a notebook like this… (applause in the studio).
[–] Grandpa's clearly not as simple as he tries to appear. And today he'll reveal new details. And most importantly: who, why, and for what purpose did they cut up the tent? While preparing for the broadcast, we found this footage with you, Alexey Alexandrovich, footage from 20 years ago, where you were on an expedition.
Yudin was still alive there. It's interesting that Yudin appears here in the conversation, trying to say he has the information.
There's information about other repositories; it's preserved. Somehow, the conversation is going on, and suddenly he gets offended. Since you don't want to listen to me, I won't tell you anything! You're all so smart here…
What do you think? Even back then, if you'd all opened your mouths and started listening, would he have told us anything?
[KOSKIN]: I don't think he knew everything. He knew a lot, he had some guesses… However, that same Viktor Iosifovich could have known more than Yuri Efimovich. He was offended, because that was just his nature.
[–] Well, yes, he died five years after this video was recorded. He spent his entire life grieving over the deaths of his friends. Let's recall again what our hero, Viktor Iosifovich, told us about investigator Lev Ivanov's forensic examinations in the previous program. And how Ivanov's daughter, who was on the program, reacted to these confessions.
[VICTOR]: The KGB secret department came to Ivanov and summoned him to work. They came, took all the investigative materials that contained the truth, and said it was a natural phenomenon, an avalanche, etc.
For this reason, the KGB says: "Close the case!"
He had already found out what killed them, but he couldn't say it under threat of execution.
Lev Ivanov learned all the details at the "Bar" café in Sverdlovsk from a KGB colonel. The colonel's name was Anatoly Vasilyevich Ilyichev. They were on good terms, like distant relatives. Yes, he suffered greatly over this, until the end of his days.
When Ivanov spoke with the commander of the helicopter regiment, he broached the subject and said: "It's so painful that those tourists died."
And this commander told him that he remembered when he was urgently asked to allocate a helicopter and send eight soldiers to capture fugitive criminals.
He saw that when they landed, they were all wearing gas masks. This already indicated that something was wrong here!
[IVANOVA]: There were film strips there. They had to be destroyed, naturally, since the case was classified. But he kept them for himself. And in Kostanay, he hid them in a storage room at home and said somewhere around 1996, probably: "Soon I'll be gone. The films will be lying right here."
He probably wanted someone to investigate this matter. He felt great guilt towards the relatives of the dead boys, because he hadn't been able to finish the case. He said at that moment: "I had a family, I couldn't do otherwise!"
[VICTOR]: Ivanov himself realized it was a weapon and approached them with a request. They analyzed it. But the KGB confiscated everything that could indicate… He had already found out what killed them, but he couldn't say under threat of execution.
[–] Alexandra Lvovna! How do you feel today, listening to him?
[IVANOVA]: Actually, I want to say that he's right. My father had such an examination done. We had relatives in Ufan (the Ural branch of the Academy of Sciences). We often went there, and they visited someone back then. He arranged for the examination, I think, and he did it. The results probably showed that there was radiation. These documents were confiscated, I believe, and are stored somewhere.
[–] Alexandra Lvovna Ivanova, daughter of investigator Lev Ivanov, has joined us again. After that program, did you try to find these relatives and find out anything?
[IVANOVA]: Hello, studio! I contacted the relatives who remained there, but they also don't know anything because it was so long ago. After the case was closed and classified as "top secret," my father continued working on other cases.
But at the time, he wanted to advance his career further, because he felt he had such potential that he could do even more.
[–] Alexey Alexandrovich told us a shocking story, also related to random witnesses to the events that took place at Dyatlov Pass. Let's hear it!
[KOSKIN]: Pilot Gennady Patrushev participated in the search for the Dyatlov group on a Yak-12 aircraft. He was one of the first, he said, to find the tent, seeing it from an airplane. He saw bodies near the tent. He also claimed it was a girl, her hair was scattered in the snow… And this contradicts the official version.
But he was also actively trying to figure out what happened at Dyatlov Pass. Why did the hikers die? His friend Sergei Misharin, a KGB captain at the time, helped him with this. He was young, active, and promising.
Unfortunately, in May 1961, two years after the Dyatlov group tragedy, Gennady Patrushev crashed his Yak-12. His wife claims he died under strange circumstances. He flew the wrong plane; they gave him another one. There was some kind of malfunction. According to his widow, they deliberately sent him on a faulty plane. Accordingly, he never returned from that flight.
And his friend, KGB officer Sergei Misharin, shot himself in a bathhouse shortly after Gennady Patrushev's death. It's rather strange that both of these men were actively pursuing this topic and died one after the other.
In our time, the renowned explorer Vladimir Rykshin led an expedition in search of Patrushev's plane, a Yak-12. They learned from a local resident that there were remains of the plane near Mount Chistop. They went there with good equipment, including metal detectors.
They found the remains of the plane—interesting, mysterious remains. They had quite high background radiation. They were even frightened and moved away from the area because the background radiation was really high.
[–] How would you comment on this? A chain of random events, or could they have eliminated even a KGB officer who knew too much?
[LUZAN] (historian of the secret services): The audience here and those who will be watching us on television are grateful to you and the esteemed experts who didn't abandon this tragedy halfway through—not just the tragedy of the Dyatlov group, but also the tragedy of the other people involved.
But at the same time, you've completed many tasks. But I think it's impossible to complete the task. Do you know why? Viktor Iosifovich is giving detailed information, but, with all due respect, this is again a retelling of someone else's words. The only evidence is documents.
[–] I want to show you a fragment of Viktor Iosifovich's latest interview. New information about these spheres that everyone saw. The balloons that could have caused the Dyatlov Pass tragedy.
[VICTOR]: I didn't name a single element that was used in the tests there. This lithium capsule stored heat. And while the plane was flying to Otorten an hour later, the temperature of this lithium dropped. At first, it was still normal. And when it got there, the valves triggered as it descended on the balloons.
And the lithium began to escape and meet with hydrogen. A chain reaction began, first ejecting a polyethylene balloon. It inflated to 3 meters, then burst, and the reaction escaped into the atmosphere. The balloon was up to 12 meters high, and the temperature near the center was 41.2°C.
[XENIA]: Were there experiments in the Wild Goose Valley too?
[VICTOR]: Yes, that's exactly the area where the weapons were tested. It's between Dyatlov Pass and Otorten, in the valley and Wild Goose Lake. And that's where they dropped these capsules over the valley between Otorten and Dyatlov Pass. The capsule was at an altitude of 350 to 500 meters, and then it flew like a parachute. The plastic bag that was on top of the capsule, like a parachute, exploded at an altitude of 90 to 120 meters above the ground.
[–] How does he know all these details? And in such detail?
[LUZAN] (historian of the secret services): Let's start with the fact that all this is a retelling of the people he listened to. To talk about this, you need technical training. And he said the key phrase: "Now I'm not afraid to talk about it!"
Let's go back 67 years. A completely different atmosphere. They're testing, as I understand it, a very serious weapon. Apparently, some kind of emergency occurred, as the military say. And these guys, Dyatlov's friends, they became victims of circumstance. That is, they were in the wrong place at the wrong time…
[–] Okay, now a short commercial. Next, what happened to the tourists' tent? Who cut it down and why? Viktor Iosifovich will tell you all about it. And also our experiment in the studio. Stay tuned!
Good evening again! One of the most high-profile cases of the 20th century, which is still unresolved. The death of nine tourists from Igor Dyatlov's group on the night of February 1-2, 1959. New sensational details about what happened 67 years ago. There's a lot that's new today.
Oleg Nikolayevich Arkhipov provided a recording of a telephone conversation with geologist Eduard Khodorchenko, right? Who, just shortly before his death, also told Oleg Nikolayevich about the spheres at Dyatlov Pass.
[ARKHIPOV]: You said that you were nearby in 1959.
[KHODORCHENKO]: Yes, they called it Iolotan there in Russian. We worked there. We were sitting there after our shift. I was playing chess, and I glanced out the window – a huge, huge red sphere.
My first impression was, why is the moon so big? Then such discomfort. I feel like this is wrong. Then I look: the sphere is gone. The moon is over there, the sphere is a kilometer away. You see? That's when the planes started flying. We only contact the expedition every 24 hours with our radio.
Then, a few days later, they tell us that the students are missing. The Mansi start to say they cut up the tent with knives. Then, when the search began, we were already in the know. Our radio operator was from the expedition. There were no planes left, no flights.
I've flown a lot and am familiar with the pilots' maps. A red square means flights are prohibited in that area. What's going on? And, he says, how do we know? It's right in that area, you see, where the disaster happened. And all those balloons were heading exactly from there. The theory back then was that they were testing some kind of bomb that would destroy oxygen in the air. I'm remembering it all now, connecting the dots. I'm deeply convinced that this disaster is connected to the development of some new technology, new weapons, new types of weapons.
[–] What year is this?
[ARKHIPOV]: In the spring of 2015, I met with Eduard Khodorchenko. He came to the presentation of my new book on the Dyatlov tragedy. And he emphasized that it was military aircraft flying low over that square. And they've already connected it all.
[–] Yes. But the question is also about the fact that today, for the first time, Vladislav Georgievich Karelin, Igor Dyatlov's searcher and friend, decided to share new details after the sensational interview.
[KARELIN]: There was some kind of flying object. It looked like some kind of fireball. This fireball created a variety of impressions.
Georgy Atmanaki, also a member of our group, also witnessed this phenomenon with me. He had the impression, and he wrote it down in his interrogation, that something was falling to the ground. That's the impression it made on him. And even though I said something like a meteorite, it still stuck in my head. I saw such a phenomenon on February 17th. Maybe the Dyatlov group saw the same thing on February 1st. That's why I asked Maslennikov: "Find out, please find out! Was there a missile launch of some kind?"
Prosecutor Ivanov clearly wrote that the disaster came from the air.
We didn't rush into recruiting anyone. Typically, a group is formed six months in advance, sometimes a year in advance. If I'm going on a difficult expedition, I know who to take, reliable people. And I've always had a good selection of people. And I would never have taken a complete unknown. And for some reason, Dyatlov took Zolotaryov. What influenced Dyatlov? I don't know.
Prosecutor Romanov asks me during interrogation: "You say they wouldn't be scared by a gunshot. But what if two people come with guns?" I say: "They wouldn't be scared." "What if five people come with guns?" I say: "They wouldn't be scared either." What if 10 people?
I say: "If 10 people, maybe they would be scared."
He says: "You write that down!" He made me write it down. I wouldn't have written it down if he hadn't made me.
They've already formed some kind of theory. He was apparently tasked with checking, in case I said anything about the military personnel. He was probably trying to squeeze some information out of me…
[–] This man was silent too! How old is he now?
[KOSKIN]: 90 years old.
[–] You have to wait 90 years to start talking between the lines.
[KOSKIN]: He says he participated. And Viktor Iosifovich says he heard from someone. Or maybe Viktor Iosifovich just doesn't want to tell us that he participated too?
[ARKHIPOV]: Are you referring to some search party that existed before the official search?
[–] I'll tell you more. Viktor Iosifovich—he's not really Viktor Iosifovich. We'll find out today. His name is different.
But first, let's invite the relatives of Dyatlov, the deceased participant in the expedition, who was 25 years old. Alexander Kolevatov. This is his niece, Tatyana Alexandrovna, and his great-nephew, Alexander Shevchenko. This is their first time on television. Hello. Good evening!
Sasha! As I understand it, you only found out who you're related to in mid-life, right?
[SHEVCHENKO]: Yes. I was 18.
[–] And what did your aunt Vera Sergeyevna say about this whole story?
[SHEVCHENKO]: She always told the same story, that it was some kind of weapons test, apparently. Because the government's attention wasn't just for nothing. And those balls, where did they come from? And she also said she saw the bodies, and they were a dark red, brick-colored, the color of red brick. And as a chemist, she said this indicated that these were indeed chemical burns.
[–] So, a man-made disaster. Was that your family's version of events?
[SHEVCHENKO]: Yes. She mentioned a weapons test. Perhaps there was a spill of either oxidizer or fuel.
[–] I was told you went to Yekaterinburg to visit the grave.
[SHEVCHENKO]: Yes, a year and a half ago.
[–] What emotions did you experience?
[SHEVCHENKO]: Oh, of course, we were a little shocked that it all happened. Plus, it's still not forgotten. I was recently near UPI. Now it's called URFU (Ural Federal University). A monument was erected there, I think, about two months before our visit, in memory of this tragedy. And so it's nice that people remember it.
[–] Tatyana Alexandrovna! Thank you for agreeing to appear. This is your first time on television. I'd like you to meet Yevgeny Antropov. He played Alexander Kolevatov, your relative, in the series. What do you remember? What did Aunt Nina tell you about Sasha's identification?
TATYANA [SHEVCHENKO]: It turns out I was brought there in 1959, when I was almost 10 years old. They buried me in June, when the tragedy had already happened. I remember those graves, the two-story houses, all of it. And they told me something later, when I was more mature, in 1971. They identified Sasha only by a birthmark somewhere on his leg. The rest of him was brick-colored.
[–] Is it true that the funeral was so semi-secret?
TATYANA: I can't tell you that…
ALEXANDER: As far as I know, the authorities didn't want a funeral procession or any publicity in general. I believe they were buried in two stages – first those found a month later in March, and then the fourth.
[ARKHIPOV]: It must be said that Rimma Sergeyevna possessed enormous civic courage. Her interrogation report is still astounding today. She posed very serious questions to the investigators. And you were at the morgue on Bolshakova Street. I was there, too, at the autopsy table where all this took place. Just after this, the clothes of the last four, including Sasha Kolevatov, were sent for radiation testing. Levashov, Sverdlovsk's chief radiologist, performed these tests. I can say that Alexander Kolevatov's heart muscle was severely damaged. (Shouts in the studio)
He fought to the last. We believe he cut the clothes off the dead by the cedar to keep the wounded Lyuda Dubinina warm, who couldn't breathe. He fought to the last. So your relatives can only be proud.
[–] Zhenya! Didn't they conduct the tent experiment in the series?
[ANTROPOV]: We didn't conduct the experiment. We filmed the scene. But we just cut it straight away. Those who were escaping from it. I'm listening to what they're saying now. As a representative of the cultural profession, I'm sorry that we don't engage in such research on a large scale, that we don't tell and don't try to tell this truth, but turn it all into a vaudeville, especially on such a topic. What Oleg Nikolayevich is now saying about Alexander's character traits, which I didn't know about, which would have been very helpful to me, but there was nowhere to apply them. We're too constrained by specific dramaturgy. I really miss that.
[–] I know that you also want to know everything and put all the i's in what happened. And today will be this interview that we've gathered here to watch. For the first time in 67 years, Viktor Iosifovich explains what happened and why the tent was cut. Attention!
[VICTOR]: The tent was the same, only its location had been changed. The special forces had carried it 27 meters to the northeast. They couldn't carry it any further because of the strong wind. And then they set up the tent, piled up some snow, and made it look like it was there.
That's absolutely not true. This is a new location. It's staged… Where it stood, there were actually traces of people running. And you could find blood in the snow from the blows…
[XENIA]: Why was the tent cut open from the inside? And the cut was so wide. Why couldn't they just leave that tent? Or was that also staged?
[VICTOR]: No, the tourists did it out of desperation. A person stops breathing and dies. All nine of them rush out through one door to quickly escape and get out into the light. They're hoping things will be better there.
They started cutting the tent. It was impossible to do this standing up; they had to bend over. So they cut however they felt most comfortable. They slipped out through the holes. The weapon was having an effect. One person handles it one way, another another.
[XENIA]: This cut—wasn't it staged? Did it really happen?
[VICTOR]: It was done with scissors.
[XENIA]: So it wasn't a knife?
[VICTOR]: A safety razor, the kind that twists. They took the blade and cut with it. And they cut with scissors, too.
[XENIA]: Were they some kind of big scissors? Special ones.
[VICTOR]: They were scissors. I should have taken them with me. I'd give them to you right now.
[XENIA]: Then tell me, where did you get these scissors?
[VICTOR]: I found these scissors near the cedar, stuck in the tree.
[XENIA]: And when did you find them? Excuse me, under what circumstances was this?
[VICTOR]: I walked from the site of the old tent, as they carried them down to the cedar, they carried all the dead. I decided to follow the same path they took. When I approached the cedar, there was a tree nearby with these scissors stuck in it.
[XENIA]: What made you think these were our tourists' scissors?
[VICTOR]: I thought they were the tourists' scissors because a friend told me they used scissors to cut the tent.
And here they were cutting the foot wraps, these 220 cm long foot wraps. They cut them in half, 80 cm long, with knots at the ends—for carrying the radio, battery, and other heavy equipment. They cut these windings. They arrived after the death, and they stuck these scissors in there and left them.
[XENIA]: You mean the soldiers took the scissors?
VICTOR: Yes. They cut the windings for carrying heavy equipment. And so they wouldn't throw them in the snow, so they could be seen, they stuck these scissors in a tree.
[–] Vadim Anatolyevich! How do you think he knows such minute details? It feels like he's an unknown participant in the expedition!
Vadim [VERVAN] (retired General Staff Colonel): My opinion is this. The fact is that none of us present here today are eyewitnesses to this tragedy personally. But we have at our disposal the deductive method of Sherlock Holmes. What theories can we immediately rule out?
We can probably rule out the presence of extraterrestrial influence. If it was an extraterrestrial phenomenon, then research methods evolve over time, and this site would still be being investigated with new methods.
Furthermore, why is all this still classified? And surely there's some parallel case where everything is written exactly as it is. The secrecy remains because it's still relevant today.
As for the existence of this kind of super-weapon, as described to us by the person who bears witness to these events. Here, one could say that there are things that can be taken with doubt. Not all of us are scientists, and some may simply make technical errors in their reasoning.
[–] And this tent that's here today, as I understand it, is a miniature replica of Dyatlov's tent, right?
[KOSKIN]: It's about half of Dyatlov's tent. His tent was sewn together from two similar tents. Plus, there was a small insert, 40 cm, if I'm not mistaken. But the tent material is the same.
[–] Zhenya! You want to try cutting the tent from the inside with a safety razor and scissors, like you did back then?
[KOSKIN]: That's a dangerous experiment. You could cut yourself.
[ANTROPOV]: You could wrap the razor…
[–] Okay, come on! You'll help then.
[ANTROPOV]: Thank you. Okay…
[KOSKIN]: Now I'll demonstrate everything.
[–] Zhenya wanted reality. They sent him straight to the tent.
[KOSKIN]: There are scissors, there's that very razor. We found it.
[ANTROPOV]: Yes, yes, yes. Yes, I know that. I've been thinking about it. It's clear that the state of the effect is very important there. But piercing it, I think, would be easier. Although no… I'm probably lying.
[KOSKIN]: So, look, we've drawn here, roughly according to the criminal case, the cuts that were made. From here and here. We need to repeat a similar cut.
[ANTROPOV]: Okay, let's do it.
[KOSKIN]: It works! And then I continue down, and I continue down, and I continue down.
[ANTROPOV]: It works.
[KOSKIN]: And everything's wonderful, and easy, and quick, right?
[ANTROPOV]: And even the seam is coming out well.
[KOSKIN]: And even the seam is coming out well. Let's try making this cut using scissors. Can we cut it through with scissors? Oh, we can.
[ANTROPOV]: It's more fun with scissors.
[KOSKIN]: Okay, that's it, stop!
[ANTROPOV]: We can even rip it open. That is, it's possible.
[KOSKIN]: We succeeded. The experiment can be considered a success.
[–] Now one more short commercial. Later in our program, our hero will share new sensational details. And also the most mysterious, the oldest participant in the expedition, Semyon Zolotaryov. Dyatlov took him on the expedition literally a couple of days before departure. After the tragedy, rumors circulated about Zolotaryov's son, Sasha, who was taken away in an unknown direction by his mother. All the details: where is Sasha and how the Dyatlov group died? In a few minutes.
Good evening again! The death of nine tourists from Igor Dyatlov's group on the night of February 1-2, 1959. Viktor Iosifovich is back in the spotlight. Our hero, who remained silent for 67 years, today reveals new sensational details. Before going to commercial, if you just turned on your televisions or returned from gardening, we conducted an experiment with a tent. This is exactly the material Dyatlov's tent contained.
Could they have cut the tent with a razor and scissors? As Viktor Iosifovich explained. We confirmed that, despite the thick material and their panic, it was possible. The question remains, why didn't they have a knife?
[ARKHIPOV]: The knife story is actually quite interesting!
[SHEVCHENKO]: I think they used whatever was at hand.
[ARKHIPOV]: They cut with a knife.
[SHEVCHENKO]: The knife is somewhere deep in the backpack.
[–] It also seems more logical to me if they cut with a knife.
[ARKHIPOV]: They cut the tent with a knife. This was confirmed by the examination conducted by Henrietta Eliseevna Churkina from April 3 to April 16, 1959.
[SHEVCHENKO]: If we believe Viktor Iosifovich, the soldiers took the tent with them.
[ARKHIPOV]: They did write a report to Moscow on March 23, in which they said that the tent had been cut from the inside with a knife. But this raises a question. How could they have known this at the end of March if Churkina began her investigation in Sverdlovsk on April 3rd?
There is evidence that the tent or one of its parts was examined in advance. Perhaps the military did this.
[–] Let's show you! Alexey Alexandrovich! You managed to chat online with Viktor Iosifovich. And these are the questions you asked him. Attention!
[KOSKIN]: Dear Viktor Iosifovich! I have several questions for you. I hope you can remember and answer them.
Question 1. These balloons, which, as you said, were filled with gas, and the military tested them. And after they flew away, how did they search for them? Were they disposed of somehow? Or was they not searched for at all? Do you know anything about this?
[VICTOR]: I only know one thing. When that terrible event occurred—the tourists' deaths—the KGB took measures to clear the entire area of all shell casings and other traces of human remains, all traces of blood. They removed it all. I won't tell you where they were taken for disposal. I don't know.
[KOSKIN]: Thank you! And one more question. During the tests of these balloons, besides the Dyatlov group, were there any other fatalities, including local residents, prisoners, or animals? Do you know anything about that?
[VICTOR]: There were no other casualties besides the tourists. There were no human casualties. But there were animal deaths. Wolverines, bears, and deer perished there, and everyone near the site where the weapon struck—they cleaned everything up and threw all the animals into the stream to speed up their decomposition. So there's no one and nothing nearby. There might have been some further away, but no one was looking for them there. And so, they cleared away everything near that area.
[KOSKIN]: One more question. It might not seem strange, but have you heard anything about the soldiers who participated sifting the snow with those large sieves after the launches of those balloons and capsules?
[VICTOR]: They didn't sift the snow; they simply removed and disposed of all the capsules within sight. There was no need to sift the snow.
[KOSKIN]: You said that the capsules they tested there contained some kind of toxic substances. So, do you know where the radiation on the clothes and bodies of the dead tourists came from?
[VICTOR]: It was the capsule that exploded, and there was a chain reaction. And the powder that remained on the tourists' clothes was a sediment left behind by the explosion.
[XENIA]: So, we can say that radiation was present on the tourists' clothes.
[VICTOR]: Yes, they were all contaminated with radiation!
[–] Let's invite another participant in our program to our studio. This is one of the directors of the Dyatlov Group Memorial Foundation, Oleg Rybakov. Good evening! How do you like Viktor Iosifovich?
[RYBAKOV]: I want to say that Viktor Iosifovich has a very interesting perspective. You can't say he's lying or has forgotten something. Everyone has their own position, you understand?
[–] But today you're here to talk about Semyon Zolotaryov, as well as his son Sasha, who's missing. I know you're looking into this. There's another death in the search for this Sasha.
[RYBAKOV]: Yuri Evgenievich Yarovoy, a journalist for the newspaper "Na Smenu," spent his entire life searching for Sasha. And then, information surfaced that he hadn't been taken abroad, somewhere like Germany. His trail disappeared near an Ossetian village.
And just imagine, a road between two mountain villages, a car passes there once every two weeks. He's driving calmly—and then, bam, the car suddenly hits a cliff and flips over. He's dead. His wife was seriously injured—she also died. Their son fractured his skull in the backseat, but thank God he survived. The strangest thing is that a trace of paint was found on the side of his overturned car. From another car. It was assumed that this was a murder disguised as a traffic accident.
[–] Let's recall the details Viktor Iosifovich gave on the last program about Zolotaryov's role in this story.
[XENIA]: Nine people went on the hike. Among them were Zolotaryov and Krivonischenko. Am I correct in assuming they were KGB agents?
[VICTOR]: They were KGB agents. It could have been anyone the KGB trusted. Kolya Thibeaux-Brignolle, his crime was that his parents lived in France and frequently criticized the Soviet leadership. That's why they were specifically keeping an eye on him! And it was Krivonischenko who was keeping an eye on him.
Zolotaryov had a listening device. The KGB was listening in on everything they said. He went to eavesdrop on the entire group, on everyone's conversations, including that Frenchman. And those who know the locations of military installations and everything else, to prevent such talk. Back then, the KGB was monitoring everyone, monitoring everything they said. There were secret military facilities. And they wanted no one to say anything unnecessary! That was the whole point. Let's say one of them says, "I know that they produce secret weapons at this factory, and what kind." And they start telling him that I was at the factory, that my brother told me, or that someone else worked there. But you can't talk about that! That's why they were monitoring. And whatever they said, the KGB would then check the entire conversation from beginning to end.
[XENIA]: And you can tell why Zolotaryov went with them on that expedition… It's clear that the guys there worked at special factories. Krivonischenko was actually an accident liquidator in a secret unit.
And Zolotaryov went on that expedition with a wiretap, simply to assess the situation, whether they were patriots or not, that they weren't saying or discussing anything unnecessary. Is that what he was going for?
[VICTOR]: Yes, just to eavesdrop, so there wouldn't be any word about classified facilities.
[–] Oleg! What do you think of these details from Viktor Iosifovich?
[RYBAKOV]: I think Viktor Iosifovich knows much more than he's letting on. That is, he's not saying everything.
[ORLOVA]: But it seems to me that he periodically speaks on behalf of the person who was there. Then, after a while, he remembers, comes out of that state, and begins to speak as if retelling someone else's story. And then again… These transitions happened several times. Especially when they were talking about the scissors, there was a clear transition. So I think he says exactly as much as he thinks is necessary. And when questions are asked, he answers unimportant ones in great detail and to the point. And to the questions that are truly important, he answers on a completely unrelated topic. So, he's not answering that question.
[RYBAKOV]: He might be hiding something.
[–] As I understand it, the main question journalists have already asked is: where did Zolotaryov's son, Sasha, disappear to? His son, Sasha, from his marriage to Tamara Burgach? His sister, Lyudmila, was in the studio and said that Zolotaryov's mother took Sasha from kindergarten and disappeared.
She's still looking for him. Let's hear what Oleg Rybakov told us.
[RYBAKOV]: Tamara Burgach is Semyon Zolotaryov's common-law wife. She worked in a secret design bureau, and her boss was Ivan Ilyich Schotchikov. She begins an office romance with him.
Ivan Schotchikov says: "I don't need Sasha. Why is he here? I'm not going to feed you all." And she decides to get rid of Sasha.
And then the story gets shrouded in mystery. As a researcher, I was constantly monitoring any information about Semyon Zolotaryov's son. And, you know, I once came across this quote from Lyudmila, Tamara Burgach's eldest daughter.
Once, when asked where they had taken Sasha, she said, "Due to financial difficulties, my mother gave her son Alexander to the mother of her first common-law husband." And who was her first common-law husband? Konstantin Khromov. And she has an excellent relationship with his mother.
So, she took little three-year-old Sasha away to live peacefully with her new partner, Ivan Ilyich Shchetchikov. Sasha grew up in the city of Pushkino in the Azerbaijan SSR. Today, that city is called Bilasuvar.
[–] Tomorrow on our program, we'll continue this story. Our correspondents have gone to these addresses. Also, a continuation of the interview with Viktor Iosifovich. What's his real name? And where is Sasha? Stay with us! |