A woman who murdered her husband with a hammer and buried his body in the back garden – before digging it back up, chopping it into pieces and burning them – has been jailed for six years.

She had decided to dig the body back up to destroy it without trace after sensing the cops were on to her, but inadvertently made it worse for herself when officers caught her in the act as she burned the body parts in the stove.

The murder took place in the village of Zhukovka in Kozulsky District in the Krasnoyarsk Krai region in Siberia in Russia in August 2018, with the defendant having just been sentenced now.

The woman, who has not been named but who is 50 years old, was found guilty of murdering her husband, also unnamed but who was 56 years old at the time of his death, by hitting him with a hammer during a heated argument.

The victim fell to the ground, where she kicked him twice. He then died and she buried him in the back garden at the home they shared.

But in late April or early May 2020, she reportedly got wind that the police were looking into her, prompting her to dig up her husband’s body and chop it up into smaller pieces in a bid to dispose of it more effectively.

She burned some of her husband’s body parts in a stove and reburied others in the back garden.

She was apprehended by officers who caught her red-handed as she burned parts of her dead husband’s body.

The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for Krasnoyarsk Krai and the Republic of Khakassia said in a statement obtained by Newsflash: “The evidence collected by the first department for the investigation of particularly important cases of the Main Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for Krasnoyarsk Krai and the Republic of Khakassia was found to be sufficient for a 50-year-old resident of the village of Zhukovka, Kozulsky District, to be convicted.”

The authorities added: “She was found guilty of committing a crime under Part 1 of Art. 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (murder).”

The authorities said the couple had quarrelled on the veranda of the house, which led to the fatal killing. They said: “The investigation and the court established that on one day in August 2018, a verbal argument broke out between the defendant and her husband, who were on the veranda of their house, located in the village of Zhukovka, Kozulsky District, Krasnoyarsk Krai.”

They added: “During the conflict, the woman struck the man with a hammer on the head once, as well as two kicks in the stomach. He died at the scene from his injuries. In order to conceal the crime, the woman buried her husband’s body on the territory of the household.

“In late April to early May 2020, the defendant, having learned that police officers would come to her, dug up and dismembered the body. She burned some parts of the body in the oven, and buried the rest on the territory of the household.

“On May 2, 2020, during operational-search activities, the remains of a man were discovered by police officers on the territory of the household.

“During the investigation, the defendant pleaded guilty to the crime of which she was accused.”

“By a court verdict, the defendant was sentenced to imprisonment for a term of 6 years to be served in a penal colony.”

The authorities also said that the verdict was not binding, meaning that the defendant can still appeal her six-year sentence.