German police confirmed that the body, which was recently found in the forest near the town of Debeln in Saxony, belongs to the missing 9-year-old Ukrainian.
Bild and Frankfurter Allgemeine write about this.
The investigation found no evidence that the nine-year-old Valeria became a victim of a sexual crime. However, the police are investigating the murder. The investigation is focused on the social circle of the girl's family, but there are still no suspects or arrests.
The girl arrived in Germany in 2022. According to German media, her parents are divorced, and her father is fighting in eastern Ukraine.
On the morning of June 12, it became known that a body had been found in the forest, about three kilometers from Valeria’s family home. However, at that time it was not known whether it belonged to a Ukrainian woman.
On the morning of June 3, in the German city of Debeln in the federal state of Saxony, a 9-year-old girl Valeria disappeared on her way to school. She was last seen around 06:50 local time. She was on her way to school and had to catch the city bus she took every day to school.
Her family only filed a missing person report with the police in the afternoon after she failed to return from school on time . In turn, the teachers did not inform the parents in advance that Valeria did not come to class.
The police did not disclose her citizenship, but the media noted that the girl “from a Ukrainian family” had disappeared. German publications also wrote that law enforcement officers “do not rule out a crime.”
About 100 emergency services employees, super-recognizers and volunteers were involved in the search for the Ukrainian woman. Over time, the investigation expanded beyond Germany — the police began to cooperate with Ukraine, Poland and the Czech Republic.
Prepared by: Nina Petrovich