Some parents refused to accept what they called blood money. Others, struggling financially, accepted it, though it brought no comfort. Anna Korneva used her own modest savings to organize a memorial on the grounds of the old school.
Workers installed 24 identical granite markers engraved with the names of the victims. Each black stone held a photograph of a smiling senior from the class of 1992.
Fresh flowers soon became a constant sight there. The school itself, now infamous across the region, was permanently closed in 2024.
The building had become too painful a symbol of death for the town. Parents refused to send younger children to a place associated with such a tragedy.
Under public pressure, the town government made the difficult decision to shut it down. The empty building stood abandoned for a year, its windows broken. Then it was demolished completely.
In its place, the town created a quiet public park. The memorial stones were carefully moved there, forming a remembrance walk.
It became an official place of reflection and mourning. Gromov is now serving his sentence in a correctional facility for older inmates.
He is 64, and his health has been declining steadily. Prison doctors have noted serious chronic heart problems.
It is entirely possible he will not live to complete his full 20-year sentence. Maximova, meanwhile, has been trying to qualify for early release.
The administration at her facility has given her a positive conduct record. Her attorneys hope the case might be reconsidered after five years served.
Detective Kuznetsov received formal commendation and a promotion for solving the decades-old case. But he himself has said there is no real satisfaction in solving something like this.
Those 24 young lives cannot be brought back…
