Ukraine: a soldier kills five of his comrades before fleeing

A Ukrainian National Guard soldier opened fire on his comrades in a factory, killing five and wounding five before fleeing with his weapon, the Interior Ministry said Thursday.

“A member of the Ukrainian National Guard fired shots with a Kalashnikov assault rifle at the factory guards, then fled with his weapon.

As a result, five people were killed and five others injured,” he said in a statement.

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According to the ministry, the incident took place on the night of Wednesday to Thursday in the Yuzhmach factory in Dnipro, in the center of the country, which manufactures rockets and space launchers but also missiles, vehicles and industrial tools.

The shooter is 21 years old

The shooter, born in 2001, had just received his weapon before his shift.

A special operation was launched in the city to find him and the commander of the National Guard, Nikolai Balan, went to the scene, according to the same source.

"The motives for the crime are not yet known," the ministry said.

Shootings in military units in the former USSR are a recurring phenomenon, often due to hazing, which has long been one of the most serious problems in these countries, especially in Russia, although the situation has improved in recent years. years.

These hazings, sometimes very violent, are regularly the cause of suicides or murders.