Valeriia (9) killed

36-year-old arrested in Prague restaurant

The police searching for the missing primary school pupil

(Bild: APA/dpa/Robert Michael)

Three days after the body of nine-year-old Valeriia was found in a forest near Döbeln in the German state of Saxony, police arrested a suspect on Friday.

The 36-year-old man was arrested in a restaurant in the Czech capital Prague, the police in Chemnitz announced. He is strongly suspected of having killed the child.

Investigators reportedly tipped off the Czech police about the Moldovan national. The Chemnitz public prosecutor's office had applied for a national and international arrest warrant against him, which was issued by the Chemnitz district court.

Man in custody
The man is currently in the custody of the Czech authorities, it added. The Chemnitz public prosecutor's office has sent a transfer request to the neighboring country. The man wanted for manslaughter is to be transferred to Germany quickly.

The crime against little Valeriia has shocked many people in Döbeln, a town of around 24,000 inhabitants. Many have laid candles, cuddly toys, pictures, angel figurines and flowers near the child's home to express their grief and bewilderment.

(Bild: APA Pool/APA/dpa/Robert Michael)

Disappeared without a trace on the way to school
The investigation is reportedly continuing. No further information can be provided at present. The girl from Ukraine disappeared without a trace on her way to school on the morning of June 3. After days of searching, her body was found in the undergrowth in a forest near Döbeln on Tuesday - around four kilometers from her home. According to the police, Valeriia was the victim of a crime, but initial investigations have shown that she was not sexually abused. The public prosecutor's office is investigating manslaughter.

Over the past few days, the investigation has focused primarily on the girl's social environment. According to "Bild", the arrested man is the ex-boyfriend of Valeriia's mother. The public prosecutor's office in Chemnitz initially refused to comment when asked by the German Press Agency on Friday. The newspaper "Bild" had previously reported that the ex-boyfriend is said to have contacted the mother on the morning of Valeriia's disappearance. His cell phone is said to have been logged into a cell phone in Döbeln and he was filmed by the surveillance camera of a neighboring house.

Numerous questions remain unanswered
The Czech police wrote on Twitter on Friday afternoon that the police had arrested a wanted man in the center of Prague who was suspected of a violent crime in Germany. The criminal and immigration police in Prague are now communicating with the German police, it said.

Numerous questions remain unanswered, such as the motive and background of the violent crime and the cause of death. Questions also remain as to why the police searched for the girl in the area near Döbeln so late. A witness had heard screams on the outskirts of the town on the day of Valeriia's disappearance and later reported this to the police. According to the police, however, it was not initially possible to pinpoint the exact location. When the family themselves later told the police that they had often been in the forest near the Knollensteinen, the search was extended. Possible misconduct on the part of the school is also being investigated. The school had not contacted Valeriia's mother as required when the child was not in class on Monday last week.