Russia holds state funeral, reveals "hero" in Crocus City Hall shooting

According to RIA News Agency (Russia), investigators did not find any more bodies trapped in the rubble of the Crocus City Hall theater, in the Moscow region.

Earlier, on the evening of March 22, a horrific shooting occurred at the Crocus City Hall theater. The self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS) militant group later claimed responsibility for the incident.

To date, Russian investigators are still working to find the individual or organization behind this catastrophic terrorist attack.

Most of the victims were shot at the entrance.

Responding to RBC on March 24, Mr. Araz Agalarov, owner of the Crocus City Hall theater, revealed that most of the victims of the shooting were shot at the exits of the building.

“Because, as you can understand, 6,000 people could not leave the hall within two or three minutes. Moreover, the terrorists blocked the way and shot the victims at almost all the exits,” Mr. Agalarov said.

He also added that thanks to the well-functioning fire suppression system, they were able to keep the building from collapsing for several hours after the fire.

Dave Privov, a photographer at the Crocus City Hall, told the BBC that when the terrorists started shooting into the crowd, people fell and lay on top of each other in the aisles.

Also according to information from RIA News Agency (Russia), investigators seized 4 sets of combat ammunition, more than 500 bullets, 28 magazines, and 2 AK guns equipped by the gunmen.

Hero confronts gunman

One of the concert attendees on the evening of March 22, Elena (61 years old), told Russia Today (RT) about a hero who saved countless lives during the attack.

She said as people started rushing towards the area behind the stage, one of the terrorists blocked their way.

Then, a man jumped in front of the gunman and tried to grab his rifle, then knocked him down with the butt of the gun.

It was this man's decisive, reckless action that helped dozens of people escape safely through the emergency exit behind the stage.

But Mrs. Elena was not sure whether the hero survived or not because she could not see him again afterwards. Moreover, right after escaping, she heard gunshots in the hallway.

Another victim currently being treated in hospital said she was lucky to survive because she played dead.

In an interview shared by several Russian media outlets, the unnamed woman said the terrorists spotted her and several others and quickly opened fire as the victims began to run away.

“I fell to the ground and pretended to be dead. A girl lying near me must have died,” the woman recalled.

Evgenia Ryumina - daughter of famous Russian cosmonaut Valery Ryumin - and Elena Kondakova - the world's third woman to fly into space - were also among the injured victims.

Responding to Telegram channel 112, Ms. Ryumina said that she survived by hiding behind the bodies of those who died. However, during the information check, because she could not find any identification papers, the authorities accidentally included her in the list of dead people.