A 32-year-old man in the Russian city of Stavropol killed his wife who was dying of cancer by strangling her with a phone cord, police allege.

Police investigator Vitaly Batishchev said the unidentified man has been arrested and charged in the death of his 43-year-old wife, but initial signs indicate the homicide may have been a mercy killing, The Moscow Times said Friday.

"He said he did this out of mercy to her," Batishchev said.

Batishchev said the suspect allegedly told police his wife repeatedly begged him to end her life since she was diagnosed with liver cancer years ago.

The unidentified victim's health had significantly deteriorated since the diagnosis and medical treatments had failed, the investigator said.

The Times said euthanasia, the act of taking one's life through assisted suicide or other actions, is illegal in Russia and the man is now facing up to 15 years in prison if convicted.