Following the news of Maniac Murder Cult (also known as MKY, MKU, MMC… I will use MKY) “leader”, Michail Chkhikvishvili, being extradited to the United States from Moldova, I compiled information I’ve saved on the group.
Russian FSB Alleges Ukrainian SBU behind Maniac Murder Cult
Maniac Murder Cult made international news in 2021 after arrests within Russia – including a significant event in December of 2021. Russian FSB released a statement claiming to have identified over 100 members operating within 37 regions of Russia whom they were pursuing investigative actions against. They described MKY as a “Ukrainian Neo-Nazi youth group,” and alleged the creator of the group, Ukrainian citizen Yegor Krasnov, was “operating under the auspices of Ukrainian special services.”
“The purpose of the events was to suppress the action inspired by Krasnov in various regions of the Russian Federation, in which his supporters were given instructions to commit terrorist acts and mass murders through messengers and social networks.”
FSB Statement 12/13/2021
SBU denied the allegations and responded,
“The current statements of the FSB are part of a coordinated information operation which should only be viewed through the prism of hybrid warfare.”
Reuters reported (two months prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine), “Washington has stated Russia may be planning to use alleged “provocations” by Ukraine to justify military aggression.”
According the BBC, Krasnov was detained in Ukraine in 2020 after he and two others attacked a man with a knife.
Hater’s Handbook Author, Commander Butcher, New Leader
While MKY operates as a decentralized, leaderless group, the man who has been extradited to the US, Michail Chkhikvishvili (aka Commander Butcher), is considered its current leader. He is the author of the Maniac Murder Cult propaganda booklets, the Hater’s Handbook (of which there are now 3 editions).
In December of 2023, FBI Informant Joshua Caleb Sutter used his Agony’s Point Press (APP) to publish Drums of Tophet Vol 1, Issue 1. Within the publication, APP is described: “Agony’s Point Press is the Horrifying Voice of Wamphyrism, premiere Satanic theory and predatory spirituality.” The first issue of Drums of Tophet contains an interview with Chkhikvishvili. He was asked about the allegation made by FSB. He said support from SBU would accelerate their success, and so after the rumors spread, he reached out to them, but they wouldn’t cooperate.
Side-note: It is ironic he said “feds shouldn’t be trusted,” in this interview – given Sutter had already been outed as an FBI informant at this point.
In the interview, Chkhikvishvili described himself and Krasnov as “traditional satanists,” and he described the main spiritual current of the group as Human Sacrifice.
When examining these groups, it’s important to set aside how absurd their language may initially seem. That instinctive reaction can cause us to underestimate the seriousness of the threats they pose. I understand that reaction—most of us aren’t their intended audience. But unfortunately, a growing international audience of young people is finding this kind of rhetoric attractive.
United States v. Michail Chkhikvishvili
Let’s look at the United States case against Chkhikvishvili. The May 23, 2025 DOJ Press Release states,
“Chkhikvishvili recruited people to commit violent acts in furtherance of MKY’s ideologies, including planning and soliciting a mass casualty attack in New York City”
“The defendant is accused of recruiting others to kill Jewish people, kill racial minorities, and of providing instructions on how to commit other lethal attacks — even targeting children around the holidays by poisoning candy,” said FBI Director Kash Patel.
“…the defendant, a white supremacist, recruited others to participate in a violent campaign of hatred against racial minorities and the Jewish community and to engage in the mass killing of children and others in these communities using poison, suicide bombs, firearms, arson fires, and vehicle explosions.”
Side-note: While there is an appearance of preferring targets who are racial minorities, a court filing states, “The defendant advised that “murdering anyone in USA supports mky tbh.”
The following line from the press release captures the group’s motives well:
“MKY members share a common goal of challenging social order and governments via terrorism and violent acts that promote fear and chaos.”
Hater’s Handbook
“Since approximately September 2021, Chkhikvishvili has distributed a manifesto titled the “Hater’s Handbook” to MKY members and others. The Hater’s Handbook encourages people to commit acts of mass violence. …For example, the Hater’s Handbook encourages its readers to commit school shootings and to use children to perpetrate suicide bombings and other mass killings… The Hater’s Handbook describes methods and strategies for committing mass “terror attacks,” including, for example, using vehicles to target “large outdoor festivals, conventions, celebrations and parades” and “pedestrian congested streets.” The Hater’s Handbook specifically encourages committing attacks within the United States.“
May 2025 DOJ Press Release
I have viewed the 3rd edition of the Hater’s Handbook. It does those things and more. I’ll provide some images from it.
Court Filing Seeking and Order of Detention
I recommend reading this court filing (which is seeking an order of detention pending trial) in full to increase understanding of this threat. It details the defendant’s activities – including messages he exchanged with others while soliciting acts of violence.
Antioch Shooter Hat Tips to MKY, 764 and Tempel ov Blood (ToB)
The court filing also mentions the Nashville Antioch school shooter.
That is presumably referring to the audio message in which the Antioch shooter stated, “Attacking my school for 764 & MKY.” The Antioch shooter incorporated aesthetics from different groups into his published materials. For example, that audio message used an image containing hat tips to both MKY (the hockey mask) and Joshua Caleb Sutter’s Tempel ov Blood (Drill Sgt Grey on the right).
Nihilistic Violent Extremists
Researchers and law enforcement have been coming to terms with the fact many of these threat actors are merely adopting aesthetics of different groups but are much more motivated by a disdain for humanity than by any particular ideology. The terms Nihilistic Violence and Nihilistic Violent Extremists (NVE) have been introduced.
This line perfectly captures the danger of this new trend,
“Aesthetics and memes can spread more quickly than complex ideological doctrines and when the outcome of the attack is irrelevant there is very little separating “flash” from “bang.”“
Source: ISDGlobal.org
Alliance with 764
In the Agony’s Point Press interview, Chkhikvishvili stated MKY has an alliance with 764. Jake Hanrahan interviewed a researcher who has been tracking both groups, Marc-André Argentino, who stated he identified over 17k unique users amongst the MKY & 764 telegram channels (acknowledging an unknown number of which are researchers and or law enforcement from around the globe). Hanrahan released the two episodes he recorded on 764 and MKY free to the public as a resource for parents and other care providers.
From his description:
“There have been two particularly brutal episodes of Skeleton Key that are about the militant sadism of 764 and Maniac Murder Cult (MKY). These are two groups that are inspired by far-right violence and left hand path occultism, but have created something entirely more awful. I refer to their ideology as “ultra sadism”. To put it plainly, they’re main goals are to cause untold havoc across the world, simply because their mad at it. Both groups, 764 and MKY, are know for extreme child abuse, pedophilia, random killings, and the torture of animals.
“…many people who paid for the content asked that we publish them for free on the public podcast channel. This is because the resources and information spoken about in the episodes can help parents and carers to identify if their children are being groomed or drawn into these militant sadist networks.
“So, here are both the episodes, back to back, for free. These episodes document the horrors of 764 and MKY. This is Hell on Earth: The Ultra Sadism Report.“
https://pca.st/episode/2521a492-bc02-4117-922b-c1ae10cf2713
