8-year-old boy gives DNA sample to find missing father after Kharkiv mall attack
The police posted a photo showing an 8-year-old boy giving a DNA sample to identify his father, who went missing after the Russian attack on the Epicenter in Kharkiv, Head of Regional Police Investigation Serhiy Bolvinov reported on Facebook on May 26.
"Yesterday, Mykhailo didn't wait for his father to come home. Realizing his father was probably among the victims, he and his mother went to the police," Bolvinov wrote.
The father worked in the decoration department of the hypermarket and was at work when the attack happened. Mykhailo, being a direct relative, had to undergo the DNA sampling procedure.
"Investigators and forensic experts worked through the night at the site of the attack, searching for any remains of the victims."
"We are afraid we will have to sift through the ashes to find the remains and identify the victims."
On May 26, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Synehubov reported that the death toll from the May 25 Russian glide bomb attack on the Epicenter shopping mall had risen to 14, with 43 others injured, some seriously.
Sixteen employees and visitors remain unaccounted for, according to Bolvinov. Authorities are currently gathering DNA samples from relatives to aid in identifying the missing.
The attack on the Epicenter was followed by another Russian strike on downtown Kharkiv around 7 p.m. local time. Eighteen people were injured in this subsequent attack, including a 13-year-old boy who is in serious condition and has already undergone surgery. The missile used in this attack was an S-300, fired near an office center in the Shevchenkivskyi district, reported Regional Chief Prosecutor Oleksandr Filchakov.
The response to these attacks mobilized nearly 200 rescuers, dozens of vehicles, and 400 police officers.
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