Alexey Rozhkov in court. Photo: Mediazona

A military court in the city of Yekaterinburg, in the Urals, has sentenced an activist to 16 years in prison for setting fire to a military enlistment office, independent media outlet Mediazona reported from court on Tuesday.

Alexey Rozhkov, 27, was found guilty of terrorism, justification of terrorism and spreading false information about the Russian military. The last two charges relate to an interview he gave to the Khodorkovsky Live YouTube channel, in which he spoke about the arson attack.

His was the third arson attempt on a military enlistment office in Russia after the start of the war in Ukraine. On the morning of 11 March 2022, Rozhkov painted a pacifist sign on a fence outside the office in the city of Beryozovsky, in the Urals, and threw three Molotov cocktails into the building.

Passing policemen saw the fire, were quickly able to put it out and caught Rozhkov, who did not resist arrest and acknowledged his responsibility for the arson attack, saying he had done so to protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Rozhkov spent six months in pretrial detention. He was initially charged with arson and attempted murder, though the latter charge was dropped and he was released from detention on the condition he remain in the country. However, he decided to leave for Kyrgyzstan when he understood that many people detained for committing arson were being charged with terror offences.

On 30 May 2023, men in civilian clothing came to Rozhkov’s apartment in the Kyrgyz capital, Bishkek. He was threatened, taken to Russia and handed over to Russia’s Federal Security Service. He has said he was tortured with a stun gun while in custody in Yekaterinburg, according to Mediazona.