Police in Novokuznetsk, Kemerovo region, detained a 13-year-old schoolboy who allegedly set fire to official vehicles outside the Levoberezhny police station. Russia's Interior Ministry claims the boy acted under psychological pressure from unidentified individuals.
The incident occurred on the evening of October 16 in the parking area of the police station on Tolyatti Street. According to Mediazona, the teenager poured gasoline over the vehicles and set them alight. Witnesses said two vehicles caught fire.
A passerby detained the boy and handed him over to police officers.
The regional Interior Ministry said the child committed the act after communicating with unknown individuals who had subjected him to psychological pressure.
According to a version reported by the local Novokuznetsk 112 community, the unidentified individuals contacted the boy through a dating chatbot, posing as a girl. After obtaining information from him about the location of a shopping center, they allegedly began threatening him with criminal prosecution for passing information to foreign intelligence services.
Under this account, the boy was told that he had to set fire to police vehicles to avoid punishment.
The reported sequence of events has not been independently verified. The identities of the people who allegedly pressured the child remain unknown.
Mediazona reported that a criminal case had been opened in connection with the incident, although the relevant article of the Criminal Code was not specified.
Russian criminal law, however, does not allow a 13-year-old to be held criminally responsible. Under Article 20 of the Russian Criminal Code, liability for certain serious offenses begins at age 14, while the general minimum age is 16.
The report that a criminal case was opened therefore does not mean the teenager can lawfully be held criminally responsible for the arson. His precise procedural status remains unclear.
Russian law enforcement agencies regularly report arson attacks and other unlawful acts allegedly committed by people following instructions from fraudsters or unidentified contacts online.
In this case, the child's age, the possibility of psychological coercion and the circumstances of his contact with the alleged organizers are particularly significant.