A 16-year old has been jailed for five years over a "terrorist plot" to blow up a Federal Security Services (FSB) building in Minecraft. The Siberian teenager was convicted alongside two others, who were all 14 at the time of their arrest in 2020.
The trio was initially arrested for distributing leaflets in support of Azat Miftakhov, a Russian mathematician who is currently imprisoned for "hooliganism". The "plot" to destroy the virtual government building was then discovered on their phones. Officials also claim that they found videos of the teens throwing Molotov cocktails, but their parents dismissed this as a "childish prank".
According to The Moscow Times, the teens had recreated an FSB building in Minecraft and planned to destroy it. Nikita Uvarov, Denis Mikhailenko and Bogdan Andreyev were found guilty of "undergoing training for the purpose of carrying out terrorist activities" on February 10.
Uvarov received the harshest sentence, and will serve five years in a penal colony. Mikhailenko and Andreyev were given suspended sentences, having previously pleaded guilty as opposed to Uvarov. However, they later claimed these admissions were made under duress. Uvarov similarly claimed that he was put under "mental and physical pressure" to plead guilty.
Given the amount of government influence in coverage of stories such as this, it can be difficult to discern the facts. The "truth" according to officials - who will very obviously have a pro-Putin bias, are reported by The Moscow Times - with an anti-Putin bias. However, if the most recent report is accurate, it is clear that the evidence used to accuse the trio of terrorism is weak.
The claim that they actually had explosives and planned to use them on the real FSB building comes from "anonymous law enforcement officials" in 2020. However, as per The Moscow Times' report, it seems that this was not used in evidence this week, and the case relied solely upon footage found on the teens' phones, including the Minecraft plot.
The case is attracting international criticism. Many claim that this feeds into Putin's strategy of imprisoning his opposition on terrorism charges before a crime has taken place.