Following initial reports from the tragic shooting ahead of Piknik‘s scheduled show at Crocus City Hall outside of Moscow on Friday, the Russian Investigative Committee has updated the number of dead to 137, CNN reports, three of whom were children. Sixty-two bodies have been identified so far, and a statement says that “For the remaining victims, genetic examinations are being carried out to establish their identities.”
The Health Ministry for the Moscow region said that at least 182 people were injured in the attack, with 101 still hospitalized as of Sunday night, Washington Post reports.
Via New York Times, Russia’s Federal Security Services said 11 people had been detained, including four men accused of carrying out the shooting. Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev (32), Saidakrami Rachabalizoda (30), Shamsidin Fariduni (25), and Mukhammadsobir Faizov (19) were charged in Moscow’s Basmanny District Court with committing a terrorist act. Mirzoyev and Rachalbalizoda pleaded guilty, according to a press statement from the court. The charges have a maximum sentence of life inprisonment.
The men are from Central Asian country Tajikistan and worked as migrant laborers in Russia. Several reports note that they appeared to have been badly beaten when they appeared in court, with one appearing unresponsive in a wheelchair and three bent double, CNN reports. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov refused to comment when asked by CNN about the “visible signs of violence” committed against the suspects.
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack shortly after it happened, but Kremlin officials have claimed that suspects sought to escape to Ukraine, with Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova saying, “Now we know in which country these bloody bastards planned to hide from persecution – Ukraine.” Ukraine denied any involvement.
Asked in a call with journalists on Monday why ISIS wasn’t mentioned by officials in reports about the attack, Peskov sayd, “The investigation is ongoing. So far, no coherent version has been voiced; only preliminary data has been discussed. No versions have been put forward yet.”