Artemy Ostanin

Resident of Moscow, stand-up comedian. In March 2025, he was prosecuted for incitement to hatred. The reason was his joke about a man who lost his legs due to a landmine explosion, with whom he had a conflict in the metro. The case was initiated after the statement of the movement "Call of the People". According to the investigation, Ostanin "made negative and insulting comments about a participant of a special military operation." The comedian himself claims that his joke had nothing to do with the war, and the man he joked about was "a beggar in the underground who has been skateboarding without legs for about 20 years".

On 18 March 2025, Ostanin was detained in Belarus. When detained, he was shorn of his hair and put not only in handcuffs but also a meat grinder - apparently related to one of his recent speeches, in which he ironised about the fact that in Murmansk region mothers of war dead were given meat grinders. The defence lawyer stated that Ostanin was severely beaten during his detention. On 19 March he was taken into custody in Moscow.

In December 2025 it became known that Ostanin was also accused of offending the feelings of believers because of a joke about Christ.

On 4 February 2026, the court sentenced him to five years and nine months in a general regime colony and a fine of 300 thousand rubles.

You can read more about politically persecuted people in the Telegram channel OVD-Info LIVE and our database of politically motivated criminal prosecutions.