Revenge and theft are among versions of massacre in Stavropol

As reported by law enforcers, the mass killing on January 21 in one of private houses of Stavropol may have been committed out of revenge or with the aim of robbery.

Bodies of eight persons - five men and three women - were found with gunshot wounds in the garage of one of private houses in the city of Stavropol.

"To date, the casualties have been identified; among them - Vladimir Slizaev, the owner of the household, the so-called 'criminal authority', who was engaged, according to operative data, in illicit drug dealing. He was repeatedly convicted and imprisoned; other casualties are his family members, a driver and house workers at home," said Vladimir Markin, spokesman of the Russian Investigatory Committee.

"It was also established, in the course of initial investigatory actions, that material valuables had been stolen from the house," the "Gazeta.Ru" quotes Mr Markin as saying.

The venue is studied by inspectors and operative agents; now, the bodies are taken away, the "Interfax" reports.

A boy of eight and a newborn girl survived in the massacre. Doctors initially sent the baby to the intensive care unit, but then transferred her to the department of newborns' pathology. According to the employee of the Children's Territorial Hospital in Stavropol, the baby's condition is satisfactory at the moment, the RIA "Novosti" reports.