About 20 Romani detained in Chelyabinsk Oblast following female taxi driver's murder

On October 27, police arrived at homes of a Romani community in Troitsk, Chelyabinsk Oblast. Approximately two dozen people, including children, were placed in a police van, according to 74.ru.

The police reported that they released the Romani individuals after conducting "a preventive conversation on the inadmissibility of committing offenses."

Governor Alexey Teksler announced the police raids following a spontaneous rally in Korkino. He instructed law enforcement to "act firmly if necessary" and acknowledged that authorities "had clearly overlooked a conflict with an ethnic undertone."

On the evening of October 23, police discovered the body of 40-year-old taxi driver Yelena Sarafanova on Vatutin Street in Korkino. The next day, Telegram channels started circulating wanted posters of two young men, born in 2008 and 2005. Local residents alleged that Sarafanova was killed by two brothers from a "Romani house" and gathered for a spontaneous protest at the location. Journalists reported that the crowd attempted to burn down the house where the murderer allegedly lived. Law enforcement detained over 40 individuals, as noted by 74.ru.

On October 24, a court ordered the deaf-mute teenager suspected of the murder to be jailed for two months. Later, police detained a 58-year-old man who had fired at the crowd from his home; he was charged with attempted murder and also jailed for two months. The head of the Chelyabinsk regional Ministry of Internal Affairs informed residents that Korkino police chief Vladimir Dyakin had been removed from office.