Drowning Theory Leads in Hunt for Two Missing 12-Year-Old Girls in Southern Russia
The search for two 12-year-old girls who disappeared in Kyzyl, Tuva, on July 1 has entered its fifth day, with authorities treating drowning as the primary hypothesis. Mobile phones and sandals have been found near the Yenisei River, but the girls remain missing.
Two 12-year-old girls left their home in the city of Kyzyl on the evening of July 1 and never returned. Surveillance footage captured them heading toward the Yenisei River embankment and a dam, after which their whereabouts became unknown. The search effort involves police, emergency workers, dog handlers, a paddleboard team, divers, and over 700 volunteers.
On the morning of July 2, the girls' mobile phones were discovered on the riverbank. Later that day, a sandal belonging to one girl was found in the water 300–400 meters (980–1,310 feet) away. On July 5, volunteers located a Crocs sandal belonging to the second girl roughly one meter (three feet) from the water's edge, in an area between the villages of Sukpak and Ust-Elegest in the Kyzyl district.
Russia’s federal Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case without specifying charges and is pursuing three possibilities: drowning, suicide, or a crime. Tuva Interior Minister Yury Zavyalov stated that “the main theory is still that the girls may have drowned.” On July 6, the search area expanded to the Sayano-Shushenskoye reservoir and then to the city of Shagonar, over 100 kilometers (62 miles) from Kyzyl.
On the evening of July 5, a group of volunteers and local residents attempted to enter a private home in Kyzyl. The Russian Telegram news channel Ostorozhno Novosti reported that a tip from a “clairvoyant” had circulated in search chats, claiming the missing girls might be inside. People threw stones at the home, where a family with young children lives. Police and the Russian National Guard responded, including the head of the republic’s Interior Ministry. Clashes broke out between security forces and residents. The Interior Ministry opened a criminal case on hooliganism charges, and a search of the home found no trace of the girls.
The head of the republic, Vladislav Khovalyg, urged residents to “remain calm and trust official sources of information” and warned that “stirring up the situation could lead to serious consequences.”
