Brighton Beach Man Accused Of Murdering His Ex’s Boyfriend

A Brighton Beach man has confessed to murdering a man who dated his ex-girlfriend. NY 1 is reporting that 46-year-old Mikhail Chernyaev is being charged with second-degree murder for allegedly killing 56-year-old Charles Butler, a man who had been missing since September 19.

According to a New York Post report, Butler’s body was discovered upstate in Port Jervis, New York, on October 15 but has only been recently identified via thumbprint.

Butler had been dating Chernyaev’s ex-girlfriend, Anna Lioznov, after meeting her on the internet. Sources claim that Lioznov is not believed to be involved in the murder.

The Post also reports:

Police did not release the cause of death and it was unclear why it took so long to identify him.

… Chernyaev’s arrest comes after Butler’s daughter, Molly — who saw her dad in Manhattan the day he disappeared — accused the NYPD during a February interview with Florida’s WFTV-Channel 9 of not doing enough to look for him.

Police had questioned Lioznov — who told WFTV Chernyaev was “very manipulative, very controlling” — at length after Butler’s disappearance.

Chernyaev ended up confessing to the crime after a lengthy police interview over another matter.