Shock has gripped Austria and Ukraine over the case of 21-year-old Danilo Kuzmin, son of the deputy mayor of Kharkiv, who was tortured for hours and burned alive in a car in Vienna. The motive of the perpetrators appears to have been to steal cryptocurrency worth around $200,000.

Danilo Kuzmin had been living in Vienna in recent years as a student and came from a wealthy family – his father is Serhii Kuzmin, the deputy mayor of Kharkiv.

On November 25, 2025, his family suddenly lost contact with him and became worried, as the 21-year-old did not normally go out alone. They also discovered that two of his digital crypto wallets had been emptied, raising alarm – prompting them to officially report his disappearance to the authorities. “This is a human tragedy,” said a shocked Kharkiv Mayor Ihor Terekhov, declining to comment further, as the matter is considered a personal issue for his colleague’s family.

In the early hours of November 26, an alert was raised at a residential complex in Vienna’s Donaustadt district when a resident spotted a car on fire under a bridge and called the fire department.

Firefighters who arrived at the scene extinguished a fire in a black Mercedes with Ukrainian plates – a vehicle owned by the Kuzmin family – and unfortunately discovered a charred body in the back seat.

The body was identified (through dental records) as 21-year-old Danilo Kuzmin. In the burned vehicle, a melted metal container with the smell of gasoline was found – although the car ran on diesel – indicating that the fire had been deliberately set with a flammable liquid.

The autopsy results were horrifying: around 80% of the victim’s body had severe burns, and extensive blunt force trauma was noted – including massive head injuries and broken teeth. However, no soot was found in the lungs, suggesting that the young man was already dead or unconscious when he was set on fire. The Austrian police confirmed it was a criminal act: the perpetrator deliberately set the car on fire using an accelerant, likely to cover up the murder.

Torture for Passwords and Theft of $200,000 in Crypto

The case, initially mysterious, quickly began to unravel. Police tracing Kuzmin’s movements found that on the evening of November 25, the 21-year-old had visited a luxury hotel in central Vienna (Sofitel). In the hotel’s underground parking, a confrontation occurred: a witness heard a commotion, and bloodstains were found on the stairs. Security camera footage revealed that Kuzmin was there with a 19-year-old Ukrainian acquaintance – also a student at the same university – whom he trusted.

According to Austrian and Ukrainian authorities, this 19-year-old lured Kuzmin into a trap, exploiting their friendship. It later emerged that the deputy mayor’s son had inadvertently revealed to his compatriot that his family possessed significant cryptocurrency wealth. The young perpetrator, in collaboration with a 45-year-old Ukrainian, devised a murder plan to steal these digital assets.

On the night of November 25, in the underground garage, Kuzmin was brutally attacked. He was severely beaten – almost all his teeth were broken – in an attempt to force him to reveal the passwords to his crypto accounts. Under torture, the victim was forced to provide the passwords for two digital wallets containing the cryptocurrency. After obtaining the funds, the perpetrators placed the already semi-conscious Kuzmin in the back seat of his father’s Mercedes and drove the vehicle to a secluded location in Donaustadt.

There, they poured two gasoline cans over the 21-year-old and the interior of the car – which the 19-year-old had previously purchased at a Vienna gas station, as recorded by cameras – and set it on fire, burning Kuzmin inside the vehicle. The perpetrators then fled Austria.

The killers’ motive became clear from the evidence: the victim’s cryptocurrency accounts were emptied immediately after the crime. Authorities did not officially disclose the exact amount, but it is estimated at around $200,000. The perpetrators reportedly converted the crypto quickly into cash; when apprehended, they were found with “large sums in dollar bills.” According to police sources, nearly $90,000 was seized from the 19-year-old, roughly half of their loot.

“We therefore exclude any political motive for the crime – all evidence points to financial motives,” said Colonel Gerhard Winkler, head of the Vienna state police. Austrian authorities described the case as one of the most horrifying criminal plots in recent years, as a young man from a wealthy family paid with his life for showing off his wealth to the wrong person.

The Suspects, Arrests, and Their Powerful Connections

Within 24 hours, Austrian authorities identified the main suspects and issued an international alert.

Information about their involvement was shared with Europol, and Interpol issued international arrest warrants. The two suspects had hastily left Vienna in the early hours of November 26, crossing into Ukraine – their entry through Hungary was recorded shortly after 9 a.m. that day.

On the evening of Saturday, November 29, less than four days after the crime, the fugitives were located in Odessa, Ukraine. “Both suspects were arrested by Ukrainian police late Saturday night,” Colonel Winkler of the Vienna police confirmed at a press conference.

A Ukrainian special police unit (KORD) participated in the operation, and the perpetrators were arrested in the Odessa coastal area “Trasa Zdorovia,” without resistance.

Immediately after their arrest, the two men were remanded by a Ukrainian court for 40 days. Ukraine, under its laws, does not extradite its citizens, so authorities formally requested the transfer of the case file from Austria to conduct the trial domestically. Austrian prosecutors agreed to provide all evidence and cooperate with Ukrainian authorities to ensure the defendants are tried in their home country.

They reportedly face severe charges for premeditated murder combined with robbery and torture, which in Ukraine can carry life imprisonment.

The identities of the arrested were initially not officially disclosed. However, Ukrainian media revealed their names and profiles, exposing connections to influential circles.

The 19-year-old suspect is Bogdan Rinzhuk, a student at the same Austrian university as the victim. He comes from a prominent family: his father, Ivan Rinzhuk, is a well-known businessman in Chernivtsi, western Ukraine, who amassed billions of hryvnias as a “market king” in the region. A decade ago, the father was accused of major financial misconduct (bribery and fraud) but was later acquitted.

Even more striking is that the young man’s stepmother is Olesya Ilashchuk, the current Ukrainian ambassador to Bulgaria. Ilashchuk, a former jewelry entrepreneur, was abruptly appointed ambassador in 2022, a controversial move due to her non-diplomatic background and her relationship with Rinzhuk Sr. According to her public asset declaration, she lists Bogdan Rinzhuk as her stepson.

The second suspect is 45-year-old Oleksandr Agoev, a resident of Odessa. Agoev served for years as a senior official in the Odessa Customs Office (head of a department at the Akkerman customs post) before being removed from his position. At the time of his arrest, Agoev was found with nearly $90,000 in cash, believed to be his share of the loot. He is also thought to have actively participated in the crime, being present during the beating in the garage and assisting in the transport and burning of the car. Both men remained silent after their arrest, and it is unknown whether they confessed or gave statements.

“This is not just a crime story but a story of ‘children from powerful families’ who thought they could act with impunity thanks to their parents’ influence,” commented a Ukrainian media outlet, calling for transparency and fair punishment.