In Moscow Region, a 23-year-old Muscovite was detained for attempting to carry out sabotage on the railway

Railway workers stopped an attempted sabotage

An attempted sabotage at a guarded railway facility has been prevented in the Naro-Fominsky urban district of Moscow Region. According to the press service of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, at the Bekasovo-Sortirovochnoye platform, workers of the power maintenance section noticed a man trying to unscrew the fastening bolts on a transformer cover, drain the oil and set it on fire; he had a flammable mixture with him. The railway workers stopped the offender and called the police, who detained him. The capital's transport police also reported the thwarted terrorist attack attempt on the department's own website.

Who was detained and what is known about the motive

According to the police, the detainee is a 23-year-old Moscow resident working as an electrician at one of the city's construction companies. He was carrying out instructions from handlers via a messenger app: he was promised an improvement in his financial situation, but for that he had to commit a terrorist act. According to the suspect, he understood he was dealing with scammers, but agreed for the sake of money. The detainee bought the components, arrived at the railway facility and filmed his actions on his phone.

What happens next

A criminal case has been opened against the suspect under the article on attempted terrorist act. He has been charged and taken into custody; the investigation continues. In this regard, the Ministry of Internal Affairs also recalls a similar case: earlier, according to press reports, a student in Barnaul set fire to a police car on instructions from handlers — that is, the scheme of inducing people to unlawful actions via messengers is not appearing for the first time, although these two incidents are not connected.