A 21-year-old man from Dagestan named Magomed S. was fined 10,000 rubles by the Kizlyar District Court for inciting hatred against Russians. The case stemmed from comments made three years ago in the Telegram chat UFC Eurasia, where Magomed argued with other users and made inflammatory statements about Russians. He apologized within 90 minutes of posting the comments and stated that there are worthy people among Russians. Officers from Center "E" discovered the violation. In court, Magomed admitted guilt and expressed remorse for his actions.
A court in Russia's Dagestan republic has fined a young man for anti-Russian hate speech posted in a UFC fan chat on Telegram, according to reporting on the case.
The Kizlyar District Court handed Magomed S., 21, a fine of 10,000 rubles after finding him guilty of inciting hatred against Russians. The comments in question were made three years before the ruling in a Telegram group called UFC Eurasia, where Magomed got into an argument with other users and made inflammatory remarks targeting Russians as a group.
Notably, Magomed deleted or walked back the statements within 90 minutes of posting them, telling other users in the chat that there are worthy people among Russians. That swift retraction did not prevent authorities from pursuing the case. Officers from Center "E," Russia's law enforcement unit responsible for monitoring extremism, identified the violation and brought it to prosecutors.
In court, Magomed admitted guilt and expressed remorse for his actions. The judge handed down a monetary penalty rather than a custodial sentence.
Why it matters
- The case illustrates how Russian authorities continue to apply hate speech statutes to comments made in sports and entertainment fan communities online.
- UFC-themed chat groups on Telegram, which are popular across Russia and the former Soviet republics, are not exempt from the legal scrutiny applied to other public forums.
- The three-year gap between the original post and the court ruling underscores the long reach of digital evidence in Russian criminal and administrative proceedings.
