On the afternoon of December 1, 1934, Kirov, a Politburo member of Buru, was shot at the Smolny Institute in Leningrad and died on the spot.
Kirov had been one of Buru's highest leaders. His assassination would cause an enormous shock throughout the Bolshevik Party and across the entire country.
"Investigate! We must get to the bottom of this! No matter who was involved in Comrade Kirov's murder, they absolutely cannot be spared. They must pay the price!" Joseph flew into a rage and immediately ordered the NKVD to investigate Kirov's assassination.
"Yes, Comrade Joseph!" Yagoda, the People's Commissar for Internal Affairs, answered loudly.
After Yagoda left, a faint smile appeared on Joseph's face. Clearly, Kirov's assassination would become an opportunity for him to purge those who resisted him. With this chance, the NKVD could be unleashed in full force.
On the very day of Kirov's assassination, without discussion or approval from the Politburo, Joseph amended Buru's criminal law: First, all judicial organs were to speed up the trials of prisoners accused of plotting or carrying out terrorist acts. Investigations into terrorist cases could not exceed ten days. Second, the Presidium of the Central Executive Committee of Buru would not consider petitions for pardon from such criminals. Once a verdict was issued, there could be no appeal and no pardon. Third, after such criminals had been sentenced to death, the NKVD was to carry out the sentence immediately.
It was precisely these amendments to the criminal law that allowed the NKVD to arrest Buru's senior Party, government, and military leaders without restraint and interrogate them. Then, after exhausting every means of torture to force confessions, they would simply shoot them.
Under Joseph's instructions, the NKVD began making large-scale arrests of those suspected of assassinating Kirov. Of course, that was merely