After the killing of two Ukrainian soldiers in Murnau, Upper Bavaria, the public prosecutor’s office is investigating double murder. The public prosecutor’s office did not initially disclose what specifically led to this classification. A spokesman said on Tuesday that the full clarification of the course of the crime and the motivation for the crime is the subject of further investigations. “We don’t want to prejudge the result.”
The two Ukrainians, aged 23 and 36, were stabbed to death on Saturday evening on the premises of a shopping center in Murnau in Upper Bavaria. Shortly afterwards, the police arrested a man on suspicion of committing a crime. It is a 57 year old Russian. According to information from the German Press Agency, a knife was found in his apartment, which may have been the murder weapon.
According to police information over the weekend, the man allowed himself to be arrested without resistance. The accused had been in Germany since 1990 and had appeared before the police several times, mostly for violent crimes. According to previous investigations, the two victims and the Russian already knew each other. Police assumed on Monday that all three had consumed alcohol. The mayor of Murnau, Rolf Beuting (ÖDP), also said that there were indications that alcohol was involved.
According to Bavaria’s Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann (CSU), there are indications that those involved were seen together before the crime and that a lot of alcohol was involved. At the moment there is “no compelling indication that this is, so to speak, a reflection of the dispute between Russia and Ukraine.” The public prosecutor’s office nevertheless took over the investigation on Monday because a political background could not be completely ruled out.
Memorial service in Murnau planned for Thursday
A memorial service is planned for Thursday in Murnau. A priest from the Ukrainian Orthodox community from Munich is expected to attend, said the deputy manager of the Murnau market, Nina Herweck-Bockhorni, on Tuesday. The service should give the people in Murnau the opportunity to say goodbye appropriately. They take a big part, regardless of their nationality.
Mayor Rolf Beuting (ÖDP) ordered mourning flowers at the town hall. He expressed his condolences and deepest sympathy to the relatives. “During this already difficult time for them, they lost beloved family members.” A kind of pilgrimage site has now developed at the crime scene. Many people laid flowers there and remained in silent prayer. In addition to flowers and candles, pictures of the two people killed and the Ukrainian flag could be seen on Monday.