Veshkayma kindergarten shooting


On 26 April 2022, three people were killed in a school shooting at a kindergarten in Veshkayma, Ulyanovsk Oblast, Russia.

Shooting

The attack occurred after 26-year-old Ruslan Akhtyamov entered the Ryabinka kindergarten with an IZh-27 double-barreled shotgun, shooting dead a staff member who tried to stop the attack. Walking into a classroom during the children's naptime, he opened fire, killing two small children, whom RIA Novosti said had been born in 2016 and 2018. Another staff member was wounded. After the shooting, Akhtyamov then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide.
The National Guard of Russia said that the firearm used by the perpetrator was obtained under the name of another person. Izvestia reported that the firearm's owner had been found dead, presumably killed by the kindergarten shooter.

Perpetrator

The shooter was identified as 26-year-old Ruslan Rushanovich Akhtyamov. Reports indicated that he had been struggling with mental illness.

Victims

Five people were killed in the attack:
  1. Alexander Dronin — Akhtyamov's neighbor whom he stole the gun from
  2. Olga Mitrofanova — teacher of the Ryabinka kindergarten
  3. Ekaterina Sosnova — kindergarten student
  4. Vladimir Krylov — kindergarten student
  5. Ruslan Akhtyamov — the assailant in the attack; committed suicide.
One person was injured, a 52-year-old assistant teacher.

Reactions

The governor of the Ulyanovsk region, Aleksey Russkikh, said that the families of the victims would be provided with medical, psychological and social assistance. Ombudsman Tatyana Moskalkova called on the National Guard to be on duty in schools and kindergartens. Russkikh and Yuri Bezdudny, the governor of the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, provided their condolences for the tragedy.