Yevhen Zhukov. The head of Ukraine’s patrol police. Has resigned after two of his officers faced criticism for allegedly fleeing a deadly mass shooting in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district. The incident occurred on Saturday. When a man opened fire on people in the street before taking others hostage in a nearby supermarket, but Six people died and 14 others were injured before the shooter was killed in a shoot-out with police.

Officers Under Fire

Footage shared online reportedly showed officers leaving civilians and running away from the scene — Ukraine’s Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said the officers in question had been suspended and that an investigation into their actions was under way. He emphasized that ‘Serve and protect’ is not just a slogan but must be supported by appropriate professional actions, especially during critical moments when people’s lives depend on it.

Klymenko cautioned that it was not entirely correct to make generalizations about the entire police force based on the actions of two employees; Zhukov, speaking at a news conference on Sunday, stated that the officers had ‘failed to assess the situation properly and left civilians in danger’. He also described their actions as ‘unprofessional and unworthy’.

Resignation and Accountability

As a combat officer. Zhukov said he had decided to submit his resignation from the position he currently holds. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the two officers had been ‘at the scene of the crime, but did not stop the murderer, and fled on their own’. He accused them of ‘inaction’ and said a criminal case into the matter, which will also check their previous work, was being handled by Ukraine’s national investigations bureau.

Zelensky noted the pain of losing people in an ordinary city, on the street, during a time when Ukraine is going through a war. He said, ‘We are going through a war and every day, unfortunately, there are human losses from Russian strikes.’

More details are emerging about the victims of the attack. One man was the father of a child who was injured in the attack, according to officials. Another of those who died was thought to be the boy’s aunt. The shooter has been identified as a 58-year-old man originally from Moscow but who had been living in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district in the lead-up to the shooting.

Background on the Shooter

Officials said the shooter had previously lived in the eastern Donetsk region, which is largely under Russian occupation and was subject to a separatist conflict before Moscow’s full-scale invasion. The gun he used was officially registered, and authorities are now investigating how he obtained the necessary documents to renew his licence.

Klymenko stated there would not be a mass check of gun owners following the shooting. He said he believed people should have the right to armed self-defence, especially after the experience when, at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, civilians received weapons for national resistance.

Ukrainian citizens are permitted to own non-automatic firearms provided they meet licence conditions, such as not having a criminal record or history of mental illness. Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Ukrainians have been able to carry weapons for self-defence and to defend their country.

Kyiv is often subject to attacks during the ongoing war with Russia, but shootings of this kind are rare in the city. The Ukrainian authorities are treating the incident as a terrorist act but have not yet spoken about a motive. Klymenko described the man’s mental state as ‘clearly unstable.’

Eight people remain in hospital, of whom one adult was in an ‘extremely serious condition’ and three were in a serious condition, officials said.