LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Louisville police said a man fatally shot by officers was a murder suspect who wanted to "hunt" homeless people and carved symbols into the body of one of his victims.
Body camera footage was released Wednesday showing a Louisville Metro Police SWAT officer fatally shoot a homicide suspect just south of Churchill Downs earlier this month.
Michael Hristov, who was identified in court documents, was wanted on charges of murder, assault and abuse of a corpse.
Police believe Hristov wanted to "hunt" homeless people, had a fascination with serial killers, tortured animals and idolized mass shooters.
"From the beginning, the investigators understood that this homicide was out of the ordinary," Deputy Chief Emily McKinley said. "The scene was very brutal, it was disturbing and it required an enormous amount of investigative coordination and forensic work."
LMPD said it took months of police work to connect Hristov to a homicide and the stabbing of another homeless person who survived.
According to police, someone made a Reddit post on Dec. 21, 2025, that said, "Possible serial killer in Louisville."
A Reddit post made by Michael Hristov. (Source: LMPD)
The post claimed his friend within LMPD overheard detectives with the Homicide Unit talk about multiple killings of homeless people near the Interstate 65 overpass. It detailed how the killer was creating symbols near the bodies and was asking for more information.
Police said at the time that they didn't have any investigations similar to what the post referenced and were unfamiliar with the information.
At the time of the Dec. 25 non-fatal stabbing, surveillance footage showed a possible suspect in the area on a motorized scooter.
In a separate incident the next day, the body of Michael Howard was found Dec. 26, 2025, covered in a blanket with multiple lacerations in a wooded area near I-65 and Crittenden Drive. Police said he was killed in the early morning hours of Dec. 24.
According to police, Howard had symbols carved into his body and had eight toes cut off. Seven were recovered at the scene, but one was missing. His genitalia was also cut off.
Police didn't have any suspects at the time but remembered the Reddit post.
Police said Michael Howard was stabbed and killed by Michael Hristov. (LMPD photo)
Police said while they were at the scene of Howard's murder, an officer remembered speaking with homeless people over the previous few months who mentioned someone attacking or harassing them in the area.
They described the man as someone wearing tactical gear. Another officer then remembered being approached earlier in the year by someone matching that description.
The officer was able to find body camera footage of the interaction, and police linked an address back to Hristov.
But police didn't believe they had enough evidence at the time to link Hristov to the stabbing. They obtained a warrant for his cellphone records and got surveillance footage of him at businesses between Dec. 24 and Dec. 25, 2025.
Phone pings showed him in the area of the stabbing around the same time.
A search warrant was executed on March 7, 2026, after they saw him leaving his home on a scooter. They were able to collect his backpack and found a photo of a severed toe on iCloud.
The IP address from the Reddit post was also connected to Hristov’s home, police said. Lab results then showed blood from Howard was found on Hristov's backpack.
That's what led to Hristov being indicted May 13 by a grand jury on charges of murder, abuse of a corpse and assault.
Donny Green is the co-executive director of Arthur Street Hotel, which houses more than 200 people at no cost to those staying there.
Green said he knows that many homeless people face attacks and harassment because he was once homeless himself.
"Most of the time that violence is caused by housed folks attacking unhoused folks," Green said. "Why? Because we've criminalized an entire population of vulnerable folks and put them in a situation where people think it's okay to harm people."
Dwight Cummings lives at Louisville Motel and has been homeless on and off for years. He said he was beaten by a group of kids who wanted his phone while he was charging it near the river.
He said the attackers stole both of his phones and his wallet, leaving him with injuries that will stay with him forever.
"There's violence out here every night," Cummings said. "Just depends where you're at, too."
Hristov shot and killed by Louisville police
The LMPD SWAT team responded at 1 p.m. Thursday, May 14, to the 700 block of West Whitney Avenue to serve an active arrest warrant, McKinley said at the scene. That's off Southern Parkway in the city's Wyandotte neighborhood.
When officers arrived, McKinley said they tried to get Hristov to come out of the home but he refused. Police said he then started shooting at officers from inside the residence.
"This is pretty much the highest level of resistance that you could get with a subject," McKinley said.
Officers spent nearly 25 minutes trying to get Hristov to come out of the home, deploying chemical agents in an effort to force him outside.
Multiple gunshots coming from Hristov can be heard in the body camera footage.
Police deployed two drones inside his home. The footage shows Hristov standing on the stairs with a gun pointed at the drone. He then fired several shots at the drone, the footage shows.
Body camera footage of an officer-involved shooting on May 14, 2026, in Louisville, Kentucky. (Source: Louisville Metro Police)
Four minutes later, Hristov continued firing toward officers.
At the time of the confrontation, police said Hristov called dispatch and said he was armed.
"I am not surrendering," Hristov said to dispatch. "I am going to die."
He then identified himself to dispatch and gunshots could be heard in the audio.
"I am not here to kill SWAT officers," Hristov told dispatch. "I am here to be shot by them."
He then told dispatch what weapon he was using.
Police said Hristov then exited onto the porch armed with a handgun, wearing a helmet and ballistic vest. Officers ordered Hristov to drop the weapon, police said, but he continued firing. SWAT officer Beau Gadegaard then fired his weapon, hitting Hristov.
Hristov was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said several rounds hit neighboring homes and vehicles nearby.
"Cases like this remind us that evil exists in this world and there are incredible professionals and men and women who are willing to confront it," McKinley said.
History of officer who shot Hristov
LMPD's Public Integrity Unit is investigating the shooting. Once the PIU investigation is complete, it will be turned over to the Commonwealth's Attorney for review, as well as Kentucky State Police and the Louisville Office of the Inspector General.
Gadegaard was identified May 15 as the SWAT officer who fired the fatal shot. Personnel documents show he has 25 commendation letters. He was also awarded with a Medal of Valor and Meritorious Unit Citation for his help rescuing a victim of domestic violence who was hit by a car and dragged into an apartment where she was held hostage in September 2024.
Gadegaard was also given the Distinguished Lifesaving award after he and other officers rescued another victim of domestic violence in August 2024. Personnel documents show Gadegaard was exonerated in several disciplinary cases, though he faced a 10-day suspension for conduct unbecoming and reporting of violations for his involvement in the so-called "slushy-gate," in which officers threw drinks at citizens in the west end and recorded it.
Gadegaard, on at least one occasion, was following two of the officers when they threw a drink at a citizen but did not report or attempt to stop the behavior, according to court records.
And he was suspended for three days without pay in 2017 for failing to follow department procedures when he didn't activate his body camera in the August 2016 fatal police shooting of 57-year-old Darnell Wicker, who was shot 14 times and died at the scene.
Gadegaard testified in a deposition in a civil wrongful death lawsuit filed by Wicker's family he "thought (the body cam) was activated. I — it obviously, like, was not on. I activated it, when I realized it was not activated."
According to a post attributed to Conrad on the LMPD Facebook page dated Aug. 9, 2017, after reviewing the results of an investigation by LMPD's Professional Standards, he decided to suspend Gadegaard without pay because he didn't have his body camera on when Wicker was shot.
Former Jefferson County Commonwealth's Attorney Tom Wine later said Wicker's shooting was justified and the officers wouldn't be charged.
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