Memorial to Roberts Mūrnieks near the Vecmīlgrāvis Bridge
Memorial site

A memorial to Roberts Mūrnieks, who was killed by OMON fighters on January 16, 1991 - the first victim of the barricades. The OMON base was located in Vecmīlgrāvi not far from the bridge, so the OMON members tried to intimidate the defenders of the barricades placed near the bridge. R. Mūrnieks was a driver for the Ministry of Transport and was driving by on a duty assignment when he was hit by a bullet fired by the OMON members. R. Mūrnieks died on January 16 in Riga Hospital No. 1, but his funeral took place on August 19 at the Mārupe Cemetery.

A white reinforced concrete cross was erected at the site of R. Mūrnieks's injury near the road to the Vecmīlgrāvjas Bridge. A memorial stone stands at his last residence in Baloži, Kr. Barona Street 2, Ķekava Municipality. In 2010, for his special merits in defending the independence of Latvia, R. Mūrnieks was posthumously awarded the Order of Viesturas and recognized as a Commander of the Grand Cross of the Order of Viesturas. In the winter of 2023, a memorial stand was erected at the grave site of R. Mūrnieks in the Mārupe Cemetery.