Vladimir Borisovich Belov was born on January 7, 1972, in Moscow, Russia. He had a difficult start to life. Growing up in a major city, he faced many challenges typical for urban youths. At some point during his teenage years, he began to engage in criminal activities. His first arrest came when he was caught stealing. This led to his first term in prison.

In 1991, he was released from prison but struggled to stay out of trouble. Shortly after his release, he committed a robbery that escalated into murder. This crime resulted in a significant prison sentence. On February 4, 1993, Belov was sentenced to 15 years in Ulyanovsk prison.

While in prison, he met Sergei Aleksandrovich Shabanov, who was born in 1977 and also came from Moscow. They formed a connection and became accomplices in crime. Belov was released on parole in 2001, and Shabanov had been released three years earlier, also on parole. 

On October 15, 2001, Vladimir Belov and his friend Sergei Shabanov committed their first murder together. They killed a merchant named Alexander Cheresimov for a payment of 15,000 roubles. On December 26, 2001, Belov killed a woman returning from work on Festivalnoy Street in Moscow. He stole her bag, purse, earrings, money, and a cake, amounting to 3,000 roubles.

In the early hours of January 7, 2002, Belov attacked a 46-year-old man after an argument. He hit the man with a wooden beam, stole his bag containing a video camera and personal items. The victim died later due to his injuries. This murder remained unsolved until Belov confessed in December 2022.

On January 25, 2002, he and Shabanov killed another woman, who was a citizen of Austria, in a deserted area of Zelenogradskaya Street. They stole her bag, similar to their previous acts. On February 10, they attempted to rob another victim on Vyborgskaya Street. This victim survived but reported the attack. This led to a police investigation, but the duo was not caught immediately.

On February 20, 2002, they committed another murder. Two days later, they killed another woman near Klinskaya Street. Another attack followed on February 27, when Belov hit a victim with a baseball bat, but she managed to escape. Later that same day, they killed one more person on Lyapidevsky Street.

Belov and Shabanov showed little fear of capture as they drove to their crime scenes without concern for being remembered. Their targets were often middle-income individuals. They sometimes took very little from their victims, even as little as 3 roubles. By this time, the media had named them the Khovrinsky Maniac, causing panic among residents.

Belov was eventually apprehended in 2002. Upon realizing the police were coming for him, he jumped out of a window but was arrested soon after. He confessed to the murders, although he tried to downplay his involvement. In December 2003, the Moscow City Court sentenced him to life imprisonment, while Shabanov received a 20-year sentence.

A review of their cases in 2005 found them guilty of ten attacks, including one murder from October 2001. Belov’s sentence remained the same, while Shabanov's was increased to 21 years. The total number of victims linked to them is still unclear, with some estimates reaching around 80 incidents.

As of April 2023, Belov is held at Black Dolphin Prison. He admitted to another murder from December 2002 and received an additional 19 years, to serve concurrently with his life sentence.