The court extended the arrest of an orphan cadet from St. Petersburg accused of promoting terrorism

The St. Petersburg Garrison Military Court extended until August 8 the arrest of 18-year-old cadet of the St. Petersburg Mozhaisky Military Space Academy Vadim Osipov, accused of promoting terrorism, Vitaly Cherkasov, a lawyer for the international human rights group Agora, told Mediazona.

The investigator motivated the request to extend the arrest by the fact that Osipov could hide from the investigation and court, could threaten victims who depend on him, and also “has the possibility of psychological influence on witnesses, as follows from his correspondence on social networks.” The court granted the request.

Lawyer Cherkasov asked that a preventive measure be chosen for Osipova that was not related to isolation from society. He claimed that there was nothing in the case materials except his correspondence on social networks and surveys of classmates.

“There are no reports of illegal acts or even intentions to commit illegal acts in the correspondence and witness statements. All his classmates said that Osipov was just joking, maybe it was black humor, but it was humor. Everyone understood this and no one took his words seriously,” he said.

The accused himself was not brought to court. The investigator said that since May 24 he has been in a medical hospital, where he is undergoing a psychological and psychiatric examination.

The investigator also petitioned to close the court session, citing the secrecy of the investigation. According to him, the case contains personal data of the accused, including medical information.

Osipov's lawyer said that his client is not against the presence of the press at the trial, as well as the disclosure of personal data. The court rejected this investigator's request.

On May 24, Vadim Osipov was charged with facilitating terrorist activities (Part 1 of Article 205.1 of the Criminal Code). He faces from five to ten years in prison with a possible fine of up to 500 thousand rubles.

Vadim Osipov was arrested on April 10 on suspicion of promoting terrorism due to thoughts about ways to seize the barracks, which he wrote down in a notebook during class, and books from the list of extremist materials.

In mid-May, Osipov turned to Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu with a request to look into his case and “not let a mistake ruin his life.” In the letter, the cadet said that he had no one else to turn to, since his mother died and he did not know his father. Mediazona wrote in detail about the case of cadet Osipov.