texas

Autopsy Reveals Pianist's Daughters Likely Died of Asphyxia

Michela and Nika Kholodenko were found dead in their beds March 17

The two young daughters of an internationally known pianist likely died of asphyxia, according to a medical examiner in North Texas.

The Tarrant County medical examiner's office released the autopsy reports Thursday on the bodies of 1-year-old Michela Kholodenko and 5-year-old Nika Kholodenko, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Their mother, Sofya Tsygankova, 31, has been charged in their deaths. Tysgankova allegedly told police "she didn't want to live" and "didn't see any future" for her or her children.

Vadym Kholodenko, a Ukrainian-born winner of the prestigious Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, discovered his daughters' bodies March 17 when he arrived at the Benbrook home the girls shared with their mother to take them to school.

Kholodenko told investigators he found his wife "going crazy" in a blood-covered night gown and the children "in bed, and not moving," according to the warrant for Tsygankova's arrest.

Investigators found bloody bed linens in a car parked in the garage, the warrant reveals. Two matching pillows discovered in the children's rooms — including one partially covering Michela's head — appeared to be stained with "biological fluid," investigators said.

A friend of Tsygankova's sister said Kholodenko and Tsygankova had been through a divorce and that Tsygankova was having a difficult time coping.

Tsygankova pleaded not guilty to two counts of capital murder. She remains in the Tarrant County Jail with bail set at $2 million.

Her attorney declined to comment on the specific allegations during Tsygankova's arraignment last month.

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