Political motive 'not excluded' in Ukrainian deaths in Germany

The suspected murder of two Ukrainians by a Russian in southern Germany is being investigated for a possible political motive, prosecutors said Monday.

The public prosecutor's office in Munich, responsible for investigating politically motivated crimes, has taken over the case because such a motive "cannot be ruled out", a spokesman told AFP.

A 57-year-old Russian suspect was arrested after the two Ukrainian men were found with stab wounds in a shopping centre in the Bavarian town of Murnau on Saturday evening.

The circumstances remain unclear, according to investigators.

The two victims aged 36 and 23 were Ukrainian soldiers who were in Germany for medical rehabilitation, according to the foreign ministry in Kyiv.

The older man succumbed to his injuries at the scene and the younger man died in hospital.

The suspect was arrested on Saturday in his apartment not far from the crime scene and remains in custody.

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba thanked German investigators for the quick arrest.

Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Hermann said on Sunday there were no indications that the crime was a "reflection of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine", according to the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.

Witnesses said the three men had been seen together in the town before the incident and had been drinking heavily, the newspaper said.