Ukrainian soldier held after five killed at missile factory
A Ukrainian National Guard soldier was arrested on Thursday after authorities say he fatally shot five people at a military factory and injured five others.
According to a statement from the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, the incident occurred early on Thursday at the Yuzhny Machine-Building Plant Yuzhmash in the central city of Dnipro.
After allegedly shooting the soldiers, the suspect, Artemiy Yuriyovych Ryabchuk, 20, fled from the plant, carrying an AK-47. According to Deutsche Welle, Ryabchuk called the police and later surrendered himself in the town of Podgorne, north of Dnipro.
The ministry wrote on social media that four male soldiers and one female civilian military employee were fatally shot. The site of the shooting has been closed off and civilians have been directed to stay away.
Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskiy said a special commission will be established to investigate the incident as well as the circumstances that led up to the crime, Reuters reported. Investigators will also be looking into how Ryabchuk passed medical examinations that allowed him access to weapons.
Deputy Interior Minister Anton Gerashchenko said, "First of all, the question of whether the serviceman faced psychological pressure in [his] team will be studied."
Deutsche Welle noted that the Makarov Yuzhny Machine-Building Plant is a leading state-owned producer of rocket and space equipment.
The incident at the plant occurs amid heightened tensions between Russia and Ukraine, with around 100,000 Russian troops amassed at the Ukrainian border. While Western leaders have warned of a possible invasion, Russia has denied such plans.
