Anarchist and anti-war activist Dmitry Osyagin from Kazan has been sentenced to 15 years in prison for setting fire to a court building. He was charged under three articles: calling for “extremism”, “terrorism” and committing a “terrorist act” .
According to investigators, in February 2023 Dmitry set fire to the court building in the Privolzhsky District of Kazan. The court was located on the ground floor of a residential building. As reported by the media, the fire damaged only the corner of a window frame and quickly went out. Initially, the case was opened under the article for property damage, but it was later reclassified as a “terrorist act”.
In addition to the arson, Osyagin was accused of making 17 posts calling for violence against government officials, including the President of Russia, and 27 posts which, according to investigators, contained terrorist rhetoric.
The court’s press release notes that Osyagin opposed the invasion of Ukraine and was allegedly a member of the anarchist group “Combat Organization of Anarcho-Communists” (BOAK), which has claimed responsibility for sabotage actions on railways and supports anarchist partisans. However, comrades from BOAK are not confirming Osyagin’s membership, saying:
“While proudly calling the imprisoned partisan a comrade and like-minded person, we cannot explain why state media call him a BOAK member. There are two possibilities: either he was indeed in contact with us and acted as an autonomous individual cell of the Organization — we do not collect any information about autonomous participants, and therefore precise identification is difficult — or the FSB, prosecutors, and court falsely attributed BOAK membership to him to ensure the longest possible sentence.”
After his arrest in 2023, Osyagin was added to the Rosfinmonitoring “list of terrorists and extremists.” Now, in addition to 15 years in prison, the court has banned him from administering any online resources for four years after his release.
The sentence was handed down by Central District Military Court Judge Alexander Raitskiy on June 18, 2025. Osyagin is being held in Yekaterinburg’s Detention Center No. 5 (SIZO-5).
Dmitry is a versatile person. Before his arrest, he worked in landscape design and fountain construction. He is interested in technology, IT, cryptocurrency mining, video games, history, and fantasy literature.
If you are ready to write Dmitry a letter — do it. He needs your support now more than ever.
Mailing address:
Osyagin Dmitry Vladimirovich, 08.12.1987
SIZO-5, Elizavetinskoe Highway, 19,
620024, Yekaterinburg, Russia
Letters should be written in Russian. You may use online translation tools.
In picture: Privolzhk district court of Kazan after arson attack.
Anarchist Black Cross Moscow
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Source: Avtonom