Murder of former Ukrainian MP Farion: law enforcement check suspect's involvement in Russian neo-Nazi movement

Law enforcement officers are checking the involvement of the suspect in the murder of former MP and linguist Iryna Farion in the neo-Nazi movement, and the investigation does not rule out personal grudge.

Source: joint briefing of law enforcement officers in Lviv

Details: Law enforcement officers are checking the suspect's involvement in the Russian neo-Nazi movement and establishing his ties to Ukraine and the motives for the crime.

"This is either religious or nation-based hatred," the briefing said. 

At the same time, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko added that the investigation does not rule out personal grudge either.

The suspect's phone contained a digital book titled Secret Instructions of the CIA and KGB on Fact Gathering, Conspiracy and Disinformation.

The detainee’s web history also included the names of other politicians, MPs, and the schedule of the regional council meeting. Law enforcement officers note that the young man googled it after he came back to Dnipro, so they assume that he could be preparing for another crime. 

In addition, the suspect prepared a farewell letter in which he asked to explain to his father that he "hid everything from him for his safety, not because he did not trust him." 

Previously: The investigation into the murder of Farion believes that she was shot from a distance of approximately 1.5-2 metres with a converted pistol, and a sports cartridge case was found at the scene.

Read more on the topic: Iryna Farion murder: details of the assassination, lines of enquiry, and why the Lviv professor was so controversial

Background:

• On the evening of 19 July, an attempt was made to murder former MP Iryna Farion in Lviv, on Masaryka Street. Farion later died in hospital.
• On 25 July, a suspect in the murder of Iryna Farion was detained in Dnipro. According to Ihor Klymenko, Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, the 18-year-old suspect is a resident of Dnipro. He rented at least three apartments in Lviv while preparing for Farion’s assassination. Investigators currently believe that the shooter was only a hitman.
• Ukrainska Pravda obtained a photo of the 18-year-old detainee suspected of murdering Iryna Farion.
• Slidstvo.Info journalists identified the man suspected of shooting Iryna Farion in Lviv on 19 July as Viacheslav Zinchenko. The reports indicate that Zinchenko played for the Dnipro football squad at the local young sports school as of 2023 and competed in the Pulse tournament as a member of the Juniors team a month prior to the Farion murder.

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