Serhiy Lysak, head of the Dnipropetrovsk Regional Military-Civil Administration, announced on Monday, February 12, that law enforcement officers had detained a suspect in the murder of Nikopol Deputy Mayor Vitaliy Zhuravlev. The perpetrator was hiding in a rented apartment.
According to Lysak, the 33-year-old suspect had been preparing for the murder for several months. On Thursday, February 8, he opened fire with an automatic weapon at the car in which Zhuravlev was, and then threw a grenade into the cabin. The car caught fire. After that, the man hid the weapon in a forest strip.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that the attacker intended to commit similar crimes against other officials of Nikopol. This information is currently being verified. He is suspected under Article 115 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine - premeditated murder. The court chose a preventive measure in the form of detention.
On February 8, the Prosecutor General's Office reported that in Nikopol, unknown individuals shot at a car carrying the deputy mayor. He died on the spot.
Law enforcement sources reported that one of the main versions of Zhuravlev's murder is a conflict with a local group that has been going on since 2017.
