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The crime scene in Oberhausen

Photo: Christoph Reichwein / dpa

After the knife attack in Oberhausen, the second young player from the second division basketball team ART Giants Düsseldorf has died. The Ukrainian Artem Kozachenko died in hospital from his serious injuries ten days after the violence in which his compatriot and teammate Volodymyr Yermakov had already been killed. His club announced this. Kozachenko was only 18 years old, Yermakov was 17.

"The ART Giants are deeply shocked, mourn and say goodbye to another great basketball talent from their own ranks," the Giants announced on their homepage. "Artem and Volodymyr maintained a deep and close friendship with each other, which showed how important human connection and community interaction are in our lives," it continued.

According to the police, a dispute between two groups of youth escalated on Saturday a week ago at a bus stop on Willy-Brandt-Platz in Oberhausen. There had previously been a verbal argument on a bus on the way to the city center. Four young people were seriously injured; Yermakov died during an emergency operation.

Since the crime, the homicide squad has arrested several suspects aged 14 and 15. The Essen public prosecutor's office applied for an arrest warrant for manslaughter and grievous bodily harm against a 15-year-old. Arrest warrants are also said to have been executed against three other young people.

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