A resident of Leningrad region has been fined for incitement to terrorism over online comments.

The Western District Military Court has sentenced 53-year-old Anton Zaretsky, a resident of Leningrad Region, to a fine of 500,000 rubles (approx. US$5,400) under the article on inciting terrorism online (Part 2, Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by Mediazona.

Taking into account the time spent in pre-trial detention, the fine was reduced to 400,000 rubles (approx. US$4,300). The prosecutor had requested a six-year prison sentence. Zaretsky had been awaiting the verdict in custody, but should now be released. He was sent to the pre-trial detention centre in March.

The criminal case was brought over two comments. According to investigators, in July 2024, under a post about the bombing of a GRU officer’s car in Moscow, Zaretsky wrote: ‘Feet are nothing, they’ll definitely find him prosthetics. But his wife’s face is more impressive than his paws. Her disfigured face will be his eternal reproach.’ In August that same year, Zaretsky commented on the arrival of a Ukrainian drone in a high-rise apartment block in Engels, a city on the Volga River: ‘The airfield in Engels should have been wiped out a long time ago, and spending money on this unfinished building is just a waste.’

The man described his comments as ‘an outpouring of emotions’ after learning of the deaths of relatives in Ukraine. He pleaded guilty.

Before the criminal prosecution, Zaretsky worked in electrical installation and was formerly employed by the police.