Murder story of Shostka Jews at the Chemical Engineering College in Shostka

...At 2 AM on July 19, 1942, I heard the heartrending screams of a mass of people coming from the direction of the Educational Institute. They were followed by the sound of two shots inside the building. I jumped out of bed, pushed aside the curtain next to the window, and saw some people near the pit. They climbed down the stairs into the pit, one by one. Out of the building of the Educational Institute, 10-13 people, accompanied by Germans and volunteers, went to the pit. Most of them were barefoot and half-undressed. Some individual shots were heard, until all the people were in the pit. Then, I heard the heavy, continuous rattle of machine guns. While the shooting was going on, one person – I think it was V. Shelestunov – tried to escape. He managed to run about 100 meters, before being killed by the policemen. Afterward, two people were ordered to retrieve the dead body and bring it to the pit, and they also jumped into the pit after him. Out of all the condemned, I recognized Zinaida Koporina. After the machine guns had fallen silent, the policemen, volunteers, and Germans covered the pit, first with their hands, and then with shovels.