Sheriff releases Burning Man homicide update following SFGATE story

The Pershing County Sheriff’s Office has information regarding potential suspects in last year’s brutal homicide at Burning Man that left 37-year-old Vadim Kruglov stabbed to death on the final day of the event. 

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Authorities have “potential suspect DNA profiles” that were recovered in the investigation and have been analyzed by their crime lab, according to a Monday afternoon news release from Sheriff Jerry Allen. The sheriff added that they have no more “verifiable information on an alleged perpetrator.”

“We have been in contact with our State and Federal partners in an attempt to verify and validate this report as well as the other tips and communications we continue to receive,” Allen said in the news release.

Kruglov was found stabbed to death on the outskirts of the event on Aug. 30, 2025, according to a previous update from the sheriff’s office. In September 2025, the sheriff’s office released an image of the type of knife used in the homicide but otherwise has shared almost no information publicly about the killing and did not respond to multiple requests for comment from SFGATE over the past year.

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Monday afternoon’s news release comes at the start of the annual event and just hours after SFGATE published a yearlong investigation into Kruglov’s final days by independent journalists Sam Anderson and Kevin Kunze. The investigation included exclusive details, including that Kruglov feared for his life before he was killed and had spent some of his final hours at Burning Man’s hospital before being released and killed hours later. 

Allen said he released Monday’s update after repeated inquiries into Kruglov’s killing. The sheriff said his staff is working with state and federal authorities and is continuing to “diligently investigate this heinous and complicated crime.” Allen said it appears to be an isolated crime but also encouraged Burning Man attendees to “be vigilant” and to “watch out for each other’s safety.”