A resident of Kuban was convicted in a case involving a series of diversions.

The court sentenced a resident of the Krasnodar region to 12 years in prison, finding him guilty of arson of a cellular communication tower, a transformer substation, and railway equipment.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", in the southern regions of Russia, after the start of the military operation in Ukraine, there have been repeated incidents of arson of equipment, including on the railway. Investigators classify these incidents as diversions and terrorist acts, and in courts, the accused receive long prison sentences. For instance, in April, the Krasnodar Regional Court sentenced a resident of Kuban, Daniil Khizhnyak, to 12.5 years in prison for setting fire to a relay cabinet on the railway.

12:39 26.09.2026

The fight against diversions in southern Russia has turned victims of recruitment into defendants in serious cases

Investigations into arson cases of railway infrastructure in the southern regions of Russia often formally classify the actions of recruited teenagers under serious articles, without considering their age, the circumstances of recruitment, deception, and lack of conscious intent. The system turns deceived teenagers into figures in serious state and terrorist cases, lawyers pointed out.

A resident of the Krasnodar region, Artem Borshchev, was found guilty of committing three diversions (part 1 of article 281 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), the united press service of the region's courts reported today on its Telegram channel.

According to the court, in early 2025, "looking for extra work, the defendant responded to an offer from an anonymous customer" on the internet. "For money, he was tasked with committing arson of facilities that are of significant importance for ensuring communication, energy, and railway transport," the message states.

In particular, in January 2025, in the village of Kozet in Adygea, the accused set fire to a cellular communication tower for 30,000 rubles, resulting in the disruption of the base station's operation, with damages amounting to 278,400 rubles.

The power supply to adjacent enterprises was suspended for a day

"Then in Krasnodar on Novorossiyskaya Street, a 23-year-old guy set fire to a transformer substation connected to the energy system of JSC 'Russian Railways'. As a result, the power supply to adjacent enterprises was suspended for a day, which led to the cessation of their operations and disruption of production activities. The reward amounted to 19,000 rubles," the publication notes.

The third crime was committed at the Vitaminny station in Krasnodar. "The saboteur set fire to a post that ensures the operation of the contact network of JSC 'Russian Railways'. As a result, the equipment was completely destroyed, and its further use became impossible. The arson could have led to the suspension of train movements and disruption of passenger, cargo, and military transport, for which he was promised a reward of 150,000 rubles," the publication cites the investigation's position.

The defendant was sentenced to 12 years in prison, with the first three years to be served in a penal colony, the agency reported.

Arson cases have raised doubts among lawyers and human rights defenders

It should be noted that in criminal cases of arson, a typical formulation often appears: allegedly "unidentified persons" force people to film the arsons and then send them to the "customer". Such a plot in a large number of criminal cases indicates that investigators found a simple way to prove crimes, noted candidate of legal sciences Roman Melnychenko earlier.

The investigation's versions regarding the motives for the arson of relay cabinets on the railway in the Krasnodar region seem unconvincing, and such cases often show signs of fabrication, human rights defenders pointed out earlier. The relay cabinet is an important part of the infrastructure, so the motive of diversion cannot be ruled out, argued a former police officer.

At the same time, Kuban's sentences in diversion cases have become an example for courts in other regions. Thus, in April, the appellate court doubled the sentences for teenagers from Novosibirsk in a case of diversion on the railway, so that the final punishment corresponded to the sentences handed down in Kuban in similar cases.

The teenagers tried to obtain a reduction of their sentences, while the prosecutor's representative demanded to equalize the imposed sentences with the average terms assigned by courts in other regions for similar cases - from 11 years in prison. The parents of the teenagers are convinced that the case is fabricated.