The administrator of an anonymous online network has been acquitted of terrorism charges one year after Russian authorities detained him for allegedly calling for riots on Moscow's Red Square.
Dmitry Bogatov, 26, was detained in April 2017 and charged with inciting terrorism in posts online. The math teacher denied writing the posts, adding that anyone could have used his IP address because he hosted a Tor node, which allows other Internet users to surf anonymously through his computer.
Bogatov’s attorney Alexei Teptsov told the state-run TASS news agency Thursday that investigators had closed the case after concluding that Bogatov did not commit a crime.
Meanwhile, the criminal case into the posts is ongoing and “investigators will continue to identify the perpetrators,” Teptsov was quoted as saying.
The posts in question were published under an alias calling for “rags, bottles, gas, turpentine, styrofoam and acetone” to be brought to an unsanctioned protest, with a link to a music video in which protesters launch Molotov cocktails at police.
Bogatov’s defense team has said it would represent the math teacher if he chooses to press charges against the state.
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