Moscow riots follow 'migrant' murder

[frigidmagi]

BBC

Police in Russia have arrested at least 400 people after a protest against a murder blamed on a migrant from the North Caucasus turned violent.

The protest in southern Moscow was against the killing of a young ethnic Russian stabbed to death on Thursday.

Protesters stormed a shopping centre, smashing windows, and then overran a vegetable warehouse searching for migrant workers.

There were chants of "Russia for the Russians" and "White Power".

The violence comes against a background of growing tension between ethnic Russians, migrants from the Caucasus region, who are Russian citizens, and non-Russians from the former Soviet republics.

Moscow police chief Anatoliy Yakunin blamed the rioting on "extremists", many of whom he said were drunk.

Ethnic Russian Yegor Sherbakov, 25, was killed on Thursday in front of his girlfriend.

Police have released a security camera photo of the suspect, but have not identified him.