A man known as the “black magician” from Irkutsk, a major city in Siberia, has been sentenced to community service in a case concerning the offence of religious feelings.

The magistrate of Judicial District No. 8 in the Kirovsky District of Irkutsk sentenced a 22-year-old local resident to 100 hours of community service. The court found him guilty of offending the feelings of religious believers (Part 1, Article 148 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by the Joint Press Service of the Courts of Irkutsk Region.

The press service notes that the young man presented himself on Instagram as a “black magician, astrologer, and psychic.” On social media he shared photos and videos with captions such as: “Cemetery practices. As generously as possible.” Among his posts from May 2023, law enforcement found a post containing “offensive statements” about Orthodoxy and Orthodox believers.

As part of the case, priests from two churches in Irkutsk—a major city in Siberia—were questioned. They stated that the post “is offensive in nature because it refers to the figure of the Saviour, Jesus Christ, who is significant for Christian believers.” They also emphasised that the user showed “a negative attitude towards Orthodoxy and believers, …> seeking to place himself above these people.”

A specialist who conducted an expert assessment of the post also concluded that the text included statements offensive to priests, believers, and objects of their religious veneration—God, angels, the Church, and church buildings.

The man admitted his guilt in the case but refused to give testimony in court. The press service did not specify the content of his post.