Murder or accident: two 13-year-old girls have been searched for the fifth day in Tuva

In the Republic of Tyva, the search continues for two teenage girls who disappeared on July 1 in Kyzyl. A criminal case has been opened, rescuers, police and volunteers have been involved in the operation — the coastline of the Yenisei, the river area and the surrounding areas are being examined. Despite extensive searches and the found belongings of the schoolgirls, their whereabouts have not yet been established. For more information, see the Izvestia article.

Two girls disappeared in Tuva

Nazyn Amina Omakovna and Shombun Aylana Mergenovna disappeared in the Republic of Tyva. Both girls were born in 2013. It is reported that on July 1, they went for a walk at 18:00 Moscow time, and later did not get in touch.

During the search operation, almost 40 km of the coastline and the coastal zone of the Yenisei River have already been surveyed.

Details of the search and the found belongings of the missing girls in Tuva

Teenagers loved to walk near school No. 12 in the city of Kyzyl. At the same time, the search participants received information that the girls could be seen on the bank of the Yenisei River in the area of house No. 28 on Kolkhoznaya Street.

During the search activities in the area of the dam in Kyzyl, mobile phones were found. As it became known, at about three o'clock in the morning, Amina's brother and his friends found their mobile devices turned off and carefully left on a rock near the bank of the Yenisei River.

"To be honest, I do not know why they went ashore. My daughter can't even swim," said Amina's mother.

Further, 400 m from the place, the shoes of one of the missing girls were found, which were identified by relatives.

The search area for the schoolgirls was expanded to the Sayano-Shushenskoye reservoir due to the assumption that the bodies could have been swept away by the current. The distance from the initial search point in the Yenisei River area to the reservoir exceeds 400 km.

Search operations continue around the clock, involving more than 700 volunteers, and 190 search groups have been formed, the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the republic reported. Professional rescuers, volunteers from the National Center for Missing Children, the Sayanispas detachment and other organizations are involved in the work.

The shamans saw the girls in one of the houses of Kyzyl

On the evening of July 5, local residents and relatives of the missing girls gathered near several houses in one of the districts of Kyzyl and did not respond to requests from the authorities to disperse. According to the Izvestia source, the reason for this was the shamans' reports that the girls might be in one of the buildings.

The house was inspected in the presence of witnesses from among the gathered volunteers, but no traces of the children were found, REN TV reports. The courtyard and interior spaces, including basements and even living areas, were examined.

What do relatives say about the missing girls in Tuva

The mother of one of the missing girls said that at about 17:00, her daughter Amina asked for a walk with her classmate Ailana. She only took her phone with her, saying that they were going to go to the school stadium. According to the grandmother, the girl had never left the house without permission before.

"She never left the house like that without asking. She (Amina's mom — Ed.) has five children, all at home. I've never seen anything bad in my family," the woman said.

After 8 p.m., the mother began to worry because her daughter stopped answering her phone. About an hour later, the relatives of both schoolgirls began an independent search. A relative of the missing woman added that there were no conflicts in the family, and the girl herself was cheerful, studied well and actively participated in school life.

The reaction of the authorities and law enforcement agencies

A criminal case has been opened into the disappearance of the children under Article 105 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Murder"). The republic's Prosecutor's Office organized an inspection and took control of the investigation.

At the moment, three main versions of the girls' disappearance are being considered: drowning, committing crimes against children, or suicide. Investigators have already studied the recordings from 16 surveillance cameras along the route of the schoolgirls. The questioning of witnesses is also ongoing. It is noted that many of them voluntarily came to the police to provide information about when and in what clothes they saw the children.

In addition, the course of the search operation is under the control of the head of the regional headquarters of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Major General of the internal Service Alexei Artemov. The Minister of Internal Affairs of Tuva, Yuri Zavyalov, also joined the search for 13-year-old schoolgirls.

Rescuers using watercraft are exploring the waters and coastal area of the Yenisei River downstream from the location of the phones. The missing girls are being searched on land, in the water and from the air using drones.