Russian soldiers suspected of mass murder in Donbass – investigators

Two Russian military service members have been taken into custody on suspicion of mass murder in Donbass, authorities reported on Monday. Investigators believe they gunned down nine civilians, including two children, in the city of Volnovakha.

The arrest of two troops recruited from Russia’s Far East and serving under contract was announced by the Russian Investigative Committee two days after the bodies of the victims were found.

According to media reports, the victims were members of a local family named Kapkanets, who were celebrating someone’s birthday during the evening the crime took place. They were reportedly found in the morning with gunshot wounds in several rooms of the house. Some outlets have suggested that the assailants used thermal vision goggles and silenced firearms during the nighttime raid.

The neighbors described the family as good people who were not prone to provoking conflicts. They reportedly had a side business producing and selling moonshine. RT was told by a local source that the two suspects, who appeared to be in their early 20s, wanted to procure some alcohol, but the family would not offer it on credit. The row allegedly led to the massacre.

Volnovakha is a large city in the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) located roughly 50 km south of the regional capital. Russia-allied troops from Donetsk militias captured it in March 2022, shortly after the Ukraine conflict escalated into open hostilities, but the frontline remains relatively close to it to the west.

The DPR joined Russia last year, after people living there voted for the move in a referendum. Kiev subsequently rejected its outcome, claiming the vote was a “scam.”