Woman in black holding severed child’s head near Moscow metro station detained (18+)

Russian media reported Monday that a woman working as a nanny in Moscow had decapitated a four-year-old boy and then held his head up while shouting at people near the entrance to a subway station before being arrested.

The reports indicated that the suspect killed the child in a nearby apartment, then set the home on fire before walking out into the street.

According to the reports, police said she was arrested immediately and that no explosives were found. Local media cited authorities as suspecting it was a case of mental illness rather than a terrorist incident.

The woman's ranting, recorded by several people who posted videos online, was largely nonsensical but included mentions of terrorism.

Amateur videos posted online showed a woman in black, traditional Muslim dress, waving what appeared to be a child's head around while shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) and threatening to blow herself up outside the station in northwest Moscow.