The True Story of ‘3 Guys 1 Hammer’ Snuff Film

Viktor Sayenko and Igor Suprunyuk were, once upon a time, innocent children who enjoyed traipsing about Ukraine, their lives ahead of them. But somewhere along the way, something went wrong. By the time Sayenko and Suprunyuk had approached adulthood, the two decided that it was time to take on a new hobby. That hobby was attacking seemingly helpless innocents with a hammer before typically robbing them of any prized possessions.

It’s been nearly a decade since the video “3 Guys 1 Hammer” hit the internet. Whether it still floats in cyberspace is unknown to me; I was foolish enough to watch it once, anticipating a well-made micro horror. I got something totally different, and utterly stomach turning. It’s horrific, and I’ll be a happy gent if I never stumble across it again.

Sadly, the video I saw was only a slice of the devastation that was dealt by these deprived hands and an infamous hammer. There is believed to be footage from the majority of their 29 assaults, though to my knowledge “3 Guys 1 Hammer” is the only piece of video footage to be released online.

While these two didn’t leave locals in panic for years – their killing spree lasted roughly one month, and seemed far more hate-driven due the manner in which they excessively bludgeoned their marks – they did turn a quiet residential area in a tangible nightmare.

But the boys would not remain free for long.

After the July 23^rd, 2007 arrest of Sayenko and Suprunyuk the two gave indicators that robbery may have been a motive for their crimes. According to some, that theory didn’t sit too well. Detective Bogdan Vlasenko broke it down with brutal honesty: “We think they were doing it as a hobby, to have a collection of memories when they get old.”

I don’t want to know what kind of souvenirs these twisted bastards may have begun collecting.

So, back on track, we now have a few different motives worthy of contemplation. But there’s still one belief that may actually seem more logical than what attorneys could muster.

The third major theorized motive for these crimes is money, but not money lifted from corpses, money delivered by a mysterious and wealthy man who sought to purchase actual snuff films. One of the offenders themselves once, while at school, bragged that both Sayenko and Suprunyuk were connected to a man of great riches and a thirst for grotesque cinema.

Their rumored goal, or potential deal (we’ll never know if there’s any validity to these two creating snuff films to sell), would see them provide this mystery man with 40 films in exchange for a massive sum of money.

Theories such as that might make some sense. However, no external parties were ever brought into the fold as possible perpetrators, and it seems that theory was left by the wayside.

After eventually being apprehended, things took a few strange twists in court.

The legal system was a point of concern for families of the victims. Vladimir Suprunyuk, a man with deep legal ties was the father of Igor Suprunyuk, while Viktor Sayenko was represented by his own father, an accomplished lawyer by the name of Igor Sayenko.

Somehow, all the muscle behind the boys failed to effect the final judgement.

The terror came to a close on February 11, 2009. Courts found both Igor Suprunyuk and Viktor Sayenko guilty of premeditated murder and were both sentenced to lifetime imprisonment. Suprunyuk was found guilty of 21 murders, while Sayenko was prosecuted on 18 cases. Each also fielded fifteen-year sentences stemming from robbery charges. Alexander Hanzha – the “third guy” – who was not found to be involved in the killings, was ultimately found guilty of robbery. He was sentenced to nine years in prison.