Russian blogger Oksana Samoylova has confirmed that her former husband, rapper Jigan, opened fire and held household staff hostage at their home in the Moscow region in early July. The incident, which became public on September 23, involved the musician attacking security guards and wounding one employee in the arm and leg, prompting law enforcement authorities to open an investigation.
The details were disclosed during a three-hour video interview titled The Real Life of Oksana Samoylova, hosted by journalist Ksenia Sobchak. In the broadcast, Samoylova described the standoff and recounted what she described as six years of escalating drug-fueled violence, threats of death, and domestic abuse during her marriage to the performer, whose real name is Denis Ustimenko-Vainshtein.
According to the couple's eldest daughter, 15-year-old Ariela, the July hostage situation began at 4:00 a.m. when her father entered her room and insisted that she and her three siblings leave for their shared residence immediately. Ariela said her father claimed they were in grave danger while emitting a strange chemical odor, despite asserting that he had not consumed any prohibited substances. To prevent an outburst of aggression, Ariela said she agreed to his demands, asked follow-up questions, and pretended to show interest while her father babbled incoherently in the car about a conspiracy and jumped between unrelated topics.
Upon reaching the house, the rapper armed himself with a Saiga-9 carbine, dressed in tactical gear resembling an action movie character, and summoned the family cook, nanny, and security personnel into the living room. He held the workers captive for several hours while repeatedly threatening to kill them. Ariela managed to warn her younger siblings, telling six-year-old David that robbers had broken into the residence and that their father was protecting them, even though the elder children knew the threat originated from Jigan.
To avoid provoking him, the children tried to act as if they were preparing for Shabbat while hiding inside a dressing room as Jigan paced through the property draped in weaponry. The musician subsequently announced that he intended to execute one of the security guards before opening fire on the staff. Ariela used her mobile phone to text her mother, who was traveling outside Russia at the time, begging for help and writing that her father was going to shoot them.
Hostage Siege and Escaping the Residence
Family nanny Svetlana and cook Alexandra stated that they managed to escape the house through a rear exit during the shooting. Samoylova, who remained in contact with her daughter via text messages throughout the crisis, admitted that she had never experienced such terror. Svetlana described the scene inside the residence as feeling like a military combat zone.
Ariela explained that she knew how to pacify her father because the family had endured similar violent episodes in the past. In 2023, the rapper opened fire inside their home and threatened Samoylova with a weapon. Samoylova recalled a comparable incident in 2022 when her husband suddenly became convinced that she had committed an act of betrayal, creating an atmosphere of terrifying uncertainty.
The teenager reported that her father also displayed erratic behavior during family trips. During a 2023 flight from Israel to Russia, Jigan put socks on his hands, walked up and down the aisle wearing an eye mask, stood in the passage, and repeatedly harassed flight attendants. Samoylova's mother, Elena, disclosed that the rapper also exhibited aggressive behavior while the family lived in Miami in 2020, at which point she urged her daughter to pack her bags, leave immediately, and shut the door on the marriage following terrifying events in the United States.
Death Threats and Abuse of Household Staff
Samoylova stated that her former husband repeatedly threatened to kill her during their marriage. Journalist Ksenia Sobchak cited sources within her circle who revealed that Jigan had once threatened to inject poison into Samoylova's neck so that medical examiners would be unable to determine the cause of death. Through tears, Samoylova confirmed that the event occurred, adding that she had kept silent about numerous violent incidents for years.
Describing the emotional toll, Samoylova said that living under continuous trauma caused her to experience severe post-traumatic stress, making extreme distress feel like a regular Tuesday routine. Household staff also reported persistent abuse from the artist. Cook Alexandra stated that the rapper exhibited erratic demands, asking for food to be served only to come downstairs and aggressively demand why meals were on the table, while frequently shouting vulgar insults at security guards and calling them incompetent.
Alexandra added that Jigan maintained strict control over the children's eating habits. He acted with particular aggression toward his six-year-old son David, forcing the boy to consume large portions of food despite the child's resistance.
Financial Agreements and Legal Custody Battle
Samoylova and Jigan were married for over a decade before finalizing their divorce in April. In 2020, during their eighth year of marriage, the couple signed a prenuptial agreement stipulating that all real estate and assets purchased by Samoylova prior to that year would remain exclusively her property in the event of a divorce. However, after the marriage was formally dissolved, the influencer decided not to enforce the financial provisions of the agreement and chose not to claim child support payments from her former husband.
Explaining her decision, Samoylova stated that Jigan remained the father of her children and that she did not wish to cause him harm despite the incidents. She acknowledged that fear had prolonged the marriage, noting that she ultimately decided to separate from him while participating in a reality television project because her husband refused to discuss divorce off camera and presented a risk of unpredictable behavior.
Jigan is currently staying at a rehabilitation facility in Israel. While household staff noted that the younger children still love their father and believe they will reunite once he returns from treatment, nanny Svetlana stated that the children suffered severe psychological trauma. Samoylova, who previously established a joint custody arrangement where the children spent three days with their father and three days with their mother, confirmed that she now intends to file a court petition to alter the custody order, stating that the July assault was more horrifying than previous events and ended any remaining pity she felt for her former partner.
