How Karen Yengibaryan Saved People at Crocus: Details

Karen Yengibaryan, a parishioner of the Armenian Church in Moscow, went to the burning Crocus City Hall in response to a friend's request. This was reported to RIA Novosti by Johannes Minasian, a worker of the Diocese of New Nakhichevan and Russia of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

“When the attack happened, the friend called him and said his mother was there, asking for help. Unfortunately, the friend's mother has died; she was buried yesterday. When Karen arrived at Crocus, he gave his jacket to one of the people standing on the street so they wouldn’t freeze, and he rushed into the building to help people escape. He stayed there for a long time, inhaling smoke. When he came out, he was shivering without his jacket,” said Minasian.

According to him, when Karen got home, his condition worsened, and the next day his wife called an ambulance. “He died in the hospital. The doctors said it was due to complications from smoke inhalation and exposure. He was 35 years old, such a kind person. I loved to joke with him,” Johannes reminisces.

Karen was also a member of the Armenian Youth Union, which operated alongside the church. “He was married to one of the parishioners, who was also a member of the youth union. They were a happy couple, very much in love. They had recently married and hadn’t yet had children… What Karen did was a call of the heart. People needed help. He saw that a tragedy was occurring, with children and women present, and he believed it was his duty to assist the women and children,” the agency's source said.