Motive isn’t just “because money” or “because jealousy.” Before a person crosses the line into killing, something deeper fractures: empathy breaks down, thought processes twist, self-control slips, and situational pressures light the fuse. Forensic psychology dissects these inner collapses, turning motive from a cliché into evidence that can guide investigations, shape trials, and sometimes mislead them entirely.

Andrei Chikatilo, the “Butcher of Rostov,” murdered more than fifty people across the Soviet Union while investigators executed innocents to maintain the illusion of order. His crimes exposed systemic failures, twisted motives, and a trial that became a public reckoning. This case remains one of history’s darkest lessons in denial, hunger, and the brutality of power.