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Coronavirus pandemic

Attorney says authorities decide to get tough on Moscow subway coronavirus ‘prankster’

During the incident, the man collapsed on the floor of a subway train, imitating a sudden seizure while his accomplices began shouting that the man had a dangerous viral infection

© Sergei Fadeichev/TASS

MOSCOW, February 17. /TASS/. Charges against Tajik national Karomatullo Djaborov, who took part in a coronavirus-themed "prank" in the Moscow Metro, have been toughened, Djaborov's attorney Roman Shakhmatov said.

"His charges were changed from part 1 to part 2 of Article 213 of the [Russian] Criminal Code. He is now charged not just with hooliganism, but with conspiracy to commit hooliganism. This is due to the fact that several people took part in this offence," the attorney said, underscoring that the defense considers Djaborov’s actions to be petty misconduct and not a crime.

According to the attorney, the "pranker" might face up to seven years in prison.

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Earlier, Moscow’s Cheryomushkinsky District Court sent Djaborov to a pre-trial detention facility. He was apprehended on February 8, and investigators have requested a travel ban. However, the authorities learned the same day that Djaborov does not live at the address that he indicated during his official interrogation. As a result, the investigator requested that the Tajik national be placed into custody.

According to the Interior Ministry spokeswoman Irina Volk, Moscow law enforcement stumbled upon the incident while monitoring news and social media..

During the incident, which occurred on February 2, Djaborov collapsed on the floor of a subway train, imitating a sudden seizure. At the same time, his accomplices began shouting that the man had a dangerous viral infection, inducing panic among the passengers. A video of the incident was later uploaded to a video sharing website.

The Moscow Metro’s police department initiated criminal disorderly conduct charges. The police are currently looking for Djaborov’s accomplices. The apprehended "prankster" denied the charges of disorderly conduct and pleaded not to send him to a detention facility.

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