Kyiv police detain man covered in tar after store robbery and school vandalism
Kyiv police detained a 26-year-old man on Thursday after he allegedly smeared himself with tar in an attempt to camouflage his body before robbing a store in the Sviatoshyn district, authorities said.
The suspect entered a tar barrel at a construction site, believing the substance would make him undetectable in the dark, according to a statement from Kyiv police posted on Facebook. He then broke the store’s glass door with his foot, entered the premises, and filled a bag with cigarettes, juice, candy, an orange, a grapefruit, and wet wipes. Security guards spotted him, prompting the man to flee.
As he headed home, the suspect began throwing stones at the windows of a local high school, police said. Officers located him with the stolen goods and took him into custody. Investigators charged him under Article 186, Part 4 (robbery) and Article 296, Part 1 (hooliganism) of Ukraine’s Criminal Code.
Cleaning the tar from the man’s body and clothing took police over five hours, using shoe brushes, 12 liters of oil, and 4 liters of detergent, authorities reported .
Romanian news agency News.ro and other outlets cited Ukrainska Pravda in confirming the details, including the suspect’s age and the items stolen .
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