In Kyiv on the evening of April 18, an armed man opened fire in the Holosiivskyi district and then barricaded himself inside a supermarket with hostages. According to the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, six people were killed and 14 others were injured.
Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said the 57-year-old attacker first fired randomly at people in the street. He killed four at close range, then shot another person inside the store. A sixth victim, a woman, later died in hospital from severe injuries. The dead included a married couple, the parents of a boy who was also wounded by gunfire.
The gunman then locked himself inside the supermarket with customers and staff and made no demands. Negotiations lasted about 40 minutes but, Klymenko said, produced no result. Special forces then stormed the building and killed the attacker. Four hostages were rescued.
Investigators classified the attack as a terrorist act resulting in loss of life. The Interior Ministry said the weapon used had been legally registered, and the man renewed his permit to store and carry it in December 2025. Police are now examining how that permit was issued.
“To serve and protect” is not just a slogan. It must be backed by proper professional actions, Klymenko said, ordering a review of police conduct after video from the scene spread online.
President Volodymyr Zelensky said the attacker set fire to his apartment before going outside with a weapon. Prosecutors said he was a 57-year-old native of Moscow who had long lived in the Donetsk region and had spent at least the past decade in Kyiv. Several Ukrainian media outlets identified him as Dmytro Vasylchenkov.