On the night of July 16-17, 1942, the German authorities and the local police arrested some 452 people, including Jews, non-Jewish civilians, Communists, and local partisans. The arrestees were taken to the local prison, where they were beaten and tortured. At 2 AM on July 19, the Germans took the victims to the courtyard of the Chemical Engineering College (Technikum), where a pit had been dug. The victims had to enter the pit in groups of 10-13. They were shot with machine guns.

More information: Yad Vashem

In the early winter of 1942, probably during the first months of the year, the German SS and the local authorities arrested 746 citizens – including both Jewish and non-Jewish civilians, as well as Communist activists – and took them to Factory No. 6. The arrestees were divided into groups of 15-18, and then taken to twenty different pits in the area of the factory. Once there, the people had to strip naked and hand over their shoes, whereupon the SS shot them dead with machine guns. According to Soviet sources, 250 bodies were cremated, to make room for additional victims.

More information: Yad Vashem