Convicted neo-Nazi goes free after Russian government partially decriminalizes ‘inciting hate and enmity’

The neo-Nazi Dmitry Bobrov has been set free due to the Russian government’s partial decriminalization of Article 282, a law that now penalizes some cases of “enciting hate and enmity” against particular groups with fees and administrative penalties alone. Bobrov, who has led the recognized extremist groups Schultz-88 and National Socialist Initiative, went into hiding in September 2017 when he was sentenced to two years in prison. He was captured in January 2019.

Article 282 inspired mass controversy because it allowed officials to bring criminal charges against Russian residents for critical social media posts and other forms of online speech. It was also used to imprison multiple neo-Nazis and other extremists before its partial decriminalization.