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 Benbrook Police said Sofya Tsygankova, 31, has been charged with
two counts of capital murder in the deaths of daughters, Nika, 5,
and Michela, 1. Kholodenko, 29, discovered them in their bedrooms
early on Thursday when he went to visit them at their mother's
house.
The charges can bring the death penalty in Texas.
“We have probable cause, reason to believe, that she committed the
homicides," Benbrook police Commander David Babcock told a news
conference.
Tsygankova suffered what appeared to be self-inflicted stab wounds
in the incident. She was in the hospital for treatment of her
physical injuries and will be undergoing a mental evaluation, he
said.
 She will transported to Tarrant County jail after her mental health
evaluation.
Physical evidence was collected at the scene and police detectives
have spoken to Tsygankova, Babcock said.
Kholodenko had an appointment to pick up the children on Thursday
morning when he came across the crime scene, police said.
"The loss of my children will be with me forever. But I would like
to say that I feel the support of the Fort Worth community and all
people who are sending me messages all over the world," Kholodenko
said in a statement on Friday evening.
"Wherever I go after this tragedy, my heart will stay with the
people here of Fort Worth and my daughters will rest in this soil,"
he added.
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In 2013, he won the gold medal in the prestigious Van Cliburn
International Piano Competition.
Kholodenko and Tsygankova married in 2010, but filed for divorce
last November, according to court records obtained by local media.
Police were called to this residence twice in 2014 for undisclosed
reasons, Babcock said.
(Reporting by Lisa Maria Garza; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing
by Andrew Hay and David Gregorio)
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