Igor Kruglov, father of Vadim Kruglov–who was found in a pool of blood near his tent at the recent Burning Man festival in America’s Nevada Desert–has broken his silence, calling for justice.
The 37-year-old decided to attend the arts and a co-living festival at the last minute and went missing, with one of his friends posting about his absence on Instagram five days later.
Highlights
- Vadim Kruglov, 37, was found fatally stabbed near his tent at Burning Man.
- Police immediately ruled the case a homicide after discovering multiple wounds.
- Witnesses reported an unstable man boasting about a knife and cleaning blood.
Then, at 9 pm on the night they lit the “man” (a towering 40ft figure from which the festival gets its name), his body was discovered with multiple stab wounds.
Igor has taken the preemptive action of asserting that his son was a peaceful and honest person and not involved with the mind-bending pharmaceuticals that the festival is so well-known for.
Igor is a wiry man with a voice so gentle, it's almost a whisper
Image credits: Unsplash / Jeremy Bishop
A video posted on Facebook depicts a wiry, bespectacled man speaking Russian while the white text overlay offers an English interpretation.
“Good day kind folks,” the man says. “I am Igor Dmietrivich Kruglov.”
“I am Vadim Kruglov’s father, whose life ended tragically early at a desert festival.”
Image credits: Instagram / sofi.co
“Words can’t express my feelings. I am proud of my son, now known worldwide,” he continued in a tone so soft that it was almost a whisper.
He believes his son’s demise was brought about by his sense of justice
“The world saw him as he truly was,” the senior Kruglov continued. “He felt injustice and fought for fairness always.”
Image credits: Instagram / sofi.co
“I believe a similar situation occurred here.
“This world is often unfair, but as a peaceful man I seek justice. I want to see those responsible face consequences,” the grieving father continued.
“I am deeply grateful to my son’s friends who have reached out. Everyone’s helping however they can.”
Image credits: Instagram / sashajuliard
Police decided that Vadim's demise was a homicide as soon as they saw his body
The bereft father surfaced in a later post to dispel any disparaging rumors about his son before they were implicated in his demise.
“I want to make an official statement to preempt any rumors or distortion of information,” he said in another video on Instagram.
Image credits: Facebook / Vlad Rostov
“My son was incredibly honest and a great person. I will not allow anyone to tarnish his reputation with false claims of [illegal substance] connections or anything else.”
A GoFundMe page has been started for the deceased festival-goer, reading: “A true hero of Burning Man, Vadim Kruglov, has tragically passed away (confirmed by police at 11:42 p.m., September 2, 2025).”
Said police were reported to have immediately ruled Vadim’s demise a homicide after discovering multiple stab wounds in his chest, per the Daily Mail.
Witnesses are talking about an unstable man who was bragging about his knife
According to other festival attendees, Vadim was found in a free camping area where festival goers were not required to pre-book lots for their rigs.
Image credits: Bureau of Land Management - Nevada
According to the Daily Mail, WhatsApp chat groups among them have since produced reports of an unhinged male who was boasting about a knife in his possession and claiming he had to clean blood out of his RV.
While the homicide narrative–stemming from police who responded to calls of festival goers when they found Vadim–is being broadly embraced, the local medical examiner has refrained from committing to this assessment.
A fundraiser has been launched to fly the deceased's body back to Russia
Image credits: Instagram / sofi.co
Another obituary for the deceased recalled that the Russian national, who arrived at the festival a day after it started, was proactive and sociable during the opening phases.
“Vadim poured his soul into our community: building camp, creating art, helping others, and always sharing his kindness and energy,” the post read.
Image credits: NBC News
“His contributions will forever remain part of the Burn’s history.”
Vlad Pigin, the organizer of GoFundMe, noted that the fundraiser's proceeds, which are now at $26,038, will be used to fly Vadim back to Omsk, his home city in Russia.
The incident has netizens calling for the cancelation of burning man
