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Russia overtook Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant early in the war when they invaded Ukraine. Since then, world leaders have condemned the Russian military for using the plant as a military base. Nerves are rising as the world wonders, are we heading towards a nuclear disaster worse than Chernobyl? ZAPORIZHZHIA NUCLEAR POWER STATION The nuclear plant was built in the Soviet era, near the town of Enerhodar. It has six nuclear reactors. The first five were brought online between 1985 and 1989, and the last one was connected in 1995. The power station handles generating over half of Ukraine's energy deriving from nuclear power, and about a fifth of the whole electricity in the country. Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant (credit: Wikipedia) Unfortunately, the plant fell to the Russians on 4th March 2022, after the battle of Enerhodar. Since then, Ukrainian staff continues to run the plant. It has been reported that they are not allowed to leave the plant or take breaks from sh...

  Vladimir Nikolayevich Nikolayev, was born on March 16, 1959, in Novocheboksarsk, USSR. There is not much known about his early childhood or family. What we can find is that he was in and out of prison for much of his life. He was sentenced mostly for theft and robbery. Friends said that he was an alcoholic, unsociable, and liked to cause arguments and be rowdy. Nikolayev was not a sociable person. His life was spent more incarcerated than free. The few months he had between sentences were used to commit the next crimes that would get him jailed. The stints out of jail were usually two or three months. The longest one he had was seven months in 1997, in which he committed these murders. Vladimir Nikolayev's mug shot at the time of his arrest in 1997 (Russian Police) FIRST MURDER AN ACCIDENT The first kill was a complete accident. During an alcoholic argument, Nikolayev hit his neighbors while arguing over light for a cigarette. They started a fist fight and the neighbors fell to t...

We had an international furore when United States House of Representatives Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, arrived on a state visit to the island of Taiwan on 3rd August 2022. Her visit caused Beijing to react extremely angry. The visit, according to Pelosi was to ''show that America has unwavering commitment to Taiwan.'' However, China condemned this visit as a threat to their "One-China" policy. This was the highest level state visit of a United States representative in 25 years, so we can see why this caused some friction between the two nations.  IS TAIWAN PART OF CHINA? Before we move further, lets look at the history of Taiwan. This small island off the coast of the Fujian province of China, came under Chinese control in the 17th century, under the Qing dynasty. They annexed the island in 1693, but had to cede it to the Empire of Japan in 1895, when they lost the first Sino-Japanese war. After the Second World War, the Republic of China, that overthrew the Qing d...

   The brutal case of Inga Mylläri was one of the most talked about cases of its time. Even now it holds the place for one of the most shocking crimes in Finnish history. We have covered some pretty horrific cases that have happened on this blog, but this one really takes the cake. What happened to Inga Mylläri, who was known as a diligent, decent girl? And why did the judge decide to give the criminals responsible very lenient sentences? This case sparked nation-wide protests and confusion when it was prosecuted, and the judge's verdicts came out. WHO WAS INGA MYLLÄRI? Inga Annikki Mylläri was born in Muolaa on May 3rd, 1927. She moved to Helsinki at the age of 30 years old to work as a server. At that time, this was considered a questionable job, this was because any work involving alcohol was looked down upon in those days. But Inga was respectable. According to her roommate, who testified in an interrogation, Mylläri was a stand up girl. She rarely went to parties, and cam...

  The Tulilahti double murders was another case that horrified Finns in the summer of 1959. The country was just healing from the murder of Kyllikki Saari, and the way that Riitta Pakkanen and Eine Nyyssönen were killed was very reminiscent of that terrible murder.  In  Part 1 , we had an in-depth look at the girls' backgrounds, and the gruesome details of their death. Also, we had a brief look at the police investigation. This time, the Finnish National Bureau of Investigations was not playing around, considering that the Saari murderer was still at large. PUBLIC OUTCRY Once news of the case spread, people flooded the campsite where the bodies were found. There were massive crowds, and people were incredibly angry. They were threatening violence once the perpetrator was caught. Police started working straight away on the case and there was enormous pressure on them to produce results. Arrests were done almost immediately. Five local men were arrested. These arrests felt ...

  In the summer of 1959, friends Riitta and Eine decide to cycle across Eastern Finland on the way to see spectacular Koli National Park. The girls were young, beautiful and had a thirst for adventure. Sadly, they never returned from this trip. The Tulilahti Double Murders case is one of the most prolific crimes in Finland. They deaths have been connected to the  case of Kyllikki Saari , a young girl that died in an unsolved murder in 1953. There were some similarities in both cases. Was there a serial killer on the loose, having a thirst for murdering young women? Or, was it just a sad series of coincidences? A SUMMER ADVENTURE Immerse yourself in the beauty of Finland's summer at its finest - the middle of July. It's the perfect time to take a break and travel, just like many Finnish people do. Whether you choose to explore the stunning landscapes within the country or venture to a foreign land, this time of year promises unforgettable experiences. And guess what? This tradi...

  On October 11, 1953, the body of Kyllikki Saari was discovered in a peat bog close to her home. She was missing for over 4 months and her family was desperate for answers. The young teenager went disappeared on Sunday, 17 May 1953, when she was biking home from a church youth event. It would be the last time anyone would see her.  In  Part 1 , we left at the point where Kyllikki's body was found. Unfortunately, her father and older brother, Kalevi, were part of the search party that discovered her remains. They were the also the ones that identified it.  Her body was found buried 193 metres from the road she was cycling on. Police suspected that her death was caused by blunt force trauma to her head as her cheekbones and her nose was broken. Sexual assault was also suspected because she was partially naked. Her face and torso were covered by her own coat, which suggested that the murderer could have been remorseful or ashamed of what he had done. There was a huge g...