Murder of Ukrainian Armed Forces fighters in Bavaria: new details

In German Bavaria, a 57-year-old Russian killed two Ukrainian servicemen, 36 and 23 years old, with a knife.

Two Ukrainian citizens were killed in the small town of Murnau in Upper Bavaria on Saturday evening. After some time, the suspect was detained. He turned out to be a 57-year-old Russian. According to the preliminary version of the local police, a Russian citizen inflicted fatal wounds on Ukrainians with a knife. What is known about the motive for the murder is further in the story.

The tragedy occurred near one of the local supermarkets. By the time rescuers arrived at the scene, one victim, a 36-year-old man, had already died. The other victim, a 23-year-old man, was resuscitated on the spot and taken to the clinic, but his serious injuries were incompatible with life.

According to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Ukrainian soldiers who were in Germany for rehabilitation after injuries were killed. The local police district also confirmed that one of the men arrived in Germany in August and the other in December last year. Both received treatment for hand injuries at the Murnau Accident Hospital. Ukrainians lived in housing for refugees.

On the evening of April 29, the Command of the Airborne Assault Forces reported that one of the Ukrainian soldiers killed in Germany was a soldier of the 122nd airmobile battalion of the 81st separate airmobile Slobozhana brigade of the Airborne Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The name of the deceased is not disclosed for ethical reasons.

It is reported that in 2023 he was wounded in the battles for Belogorovka, after which he underwent treatment and rehabilitation in Germany.

The suspect turned out to be 57-year-old Russian citizen Yuri Zh., who has lived in Murnau for a long time. According to police, he was detained without resistance. There is information that remains of the blood of dead Ukrainians were found in the suspect’s apartment.

The Russian is now in custody. According to local residents, the probable culprit was known to the police due to his aggressive behavior.

An investigative judge issued an arrest warrant after the man was charged at the request of the Munich prosecutor's office, the police department of Southern Upper Bavaria announced on Sunday. A 57-year-old man is accused of double murder.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba has already thanked German investigators for the speedy arrest of the suspect.

The background and motive of the crime still remain unclear. For a long time, German police could not say whether the three men even knew each other.

According to preliminary information from law enforcement officers, the crime was caused by a quarrel between a Russian and Ukrainians. The suspect was drunk and confessed to his crime. What exactly the dispute arose about is still unclear.

On Sunday, Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann said they had received testimony that the victims and the attacker had previously been seen together.

“There are indications that there was a lot of alcohol involved for all involved. All this needs to be clarified,” said the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The BR24 publication, citing one of the eyewitnesses, adds that the suspect and the deceased were friends and that evening they seemed to be drinking beer together.

According to Herrmann, there are so far no convincing signs that the direct motive for the murder was “a dispute over Russia’s war with Ukraine.”

At the same time, local residents who knew the dead well told TSN correspondent Andrei Tsaplienko they described a completely different story: the suspected Russian openly supported the Russian war in Ukraine, drank and attacked Ukrainians more than once – including in the same supermarket near which a murder occurred, and also defiantly wore a patch with the Z symbol. The Ukrainian military had serious wounds to their limbs, so they could not fully defend themselves.

Tsaplienko’s information is confirmed by a number of German media. They note that the authorities of the resort town of Murnau do not benefit from the version of the murder of Ukrainians due to the Russian Federation’s war of aggression.

Later, the leader of the parliamentary group Free Voters, Florian Streibl, said: “If it turns out that the basis of the dispute was Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine, which violates international law, it will be a disaster for the region.”

“This conflict should not happen here in Oberland,” Streible said.

And the speaker of the German federal government, Steffen Gebestreit, at today's briefing, commenting on the high-profile murder, noted that the incident causes great concern among the local population.

“It is clear that we cannot and will not tolerate anything like this on our territory. Ukrainians who fled to us from the Russian aggressive war should feel safe here,” he emphasized.

Regarding the motives and circumstances of the crime, Gebestreit urged not to draw conclusions until the investigation is completed. It is a fact that two Ukrainian citizens were killed by a “Russian-German criminal,” he added.