Blogger from Yekaterinburg catching Pokémon at a cathedral could face 5 years in prison

Popular video blogger from Yekaterinburg Ruslan Sokolovsky, who filmed himself playing Pokémon Go inside the Church of the Savior on spilled Blood in Yekaterinburg, may become a defendant in a criminal case. The police charged him with committing extremism and offending religious sensitivities, reports Meduza.

On August 11, Sokolovsky published a video on his YouTube channel showing him entering the Church of All Saints in Yekaterinburg and playing Pokémon Go on his iPhone throughout the cathedral. In a short speech at the beginning of the video, Sokolovsky says he rejects warnings reported in the media that playing Pokémon Go in churches could result in a prison sentence.

“This is complete nonsense,” Sokolovsky said, standing outside the Church of All Saints. “Who could get offended if you’re just walking around with your smart phone in a church?”

The SD MIA in the region, “monitoring” the situation in the Sverdlovsk region, found the video and handed it to the centre for combating extremism.” In addition, “civilian experts” should examine it and decide whether it violates the rights of believers to freedom of conscience and religion, which may serve as a pretext for a criminal case under article 148 of the criminal code.

In early 2016, Sokolovsky launched a self-titled atheist magazine, writing, “We have been inspired by Charlie Hebdo and have decided that there are also too few such publications in Russia that take an absolutely amoral approach to ridiculing the contemporary national reality. Using the written word to take on the censorship piling on from all sides and what’s practically a police state now isn’t a new idea, but it’s just as relevant today as ever.”

Sokolovsky has been detained and awaits trial on Sept. 3 to determine if he will be arrested, his lawyer says. If convicted, Sokolovsky could face several years in prison.

In mid-August, Valery Gorelykh, the regional police spokesperson, told local reporters that he personally wanted to see Sokolovsky sent to prison for “at least five years,” arguing that an example should be made to discourage more Pokémon Go players from committing such blasphemy.

Note that Church of All Saints (the Church of the Savior on spilled Blood) where the video was recorded was built at the beginning of the two thousandth in the place of the execution of the Royal family.