According to sources, three Siberian teenagers have been sentenced for terrorism in Russia due to plotting to blow up aMinecraftrecreation of the Federal Security Service’s Moscow headquarters. The teenagers were arrested back in 2020 at 14 years of age due to being suspected of “undergoing training for the purpose of carrying out terrorist activities.”
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While someMinecraftplayers keep busy building working tractors, the three unlucky teenagers showed interest in the FSB’s Lubyanka offices. Specifically, they were accused of recreating the building inMinecraftwith the intent of using this recreation to train for a future real-world terrorist attack. They were originally arrested due to hanging up leaflets that said “the FSB is the main terrorist,” according to The Moscow Times, as well as supporting a proclaimed local anarchist, Azat Miftakhov.
After they were arrested, the FSB searched through the teenagers' phones and discovered footage of them making pyrotechnics and Molotov cocktails, as per the reports, as well as plotting to blow up their virtual rendition of the Lubyanka offices.Minecraftrecreations include both fantasy and real-world projects, such as theMinecraftrendition of the Eiffel Tower. These are usually not nearly as realistic as the source suggests the FBS recreation may have been, thanks to the game’s blocky visual style.
The two teenagers that pleaded guilty were placed under house arrest, while the third, Nikita Uvarov, denied his guilt and claims to have been placed under mental and physical duress to confess. “I had a desire to learn something new,” said Uvarov, who may have beenplayingMinecraftdue to being bored, as teenagers are wont to do. “I would just like to finish my studies, get an education and go somewhere far away from here, somewhere I don’t irritate anyone from the special services.”
Russian human rights activists claim that Uvarov is being used as an example to strike fear among young Russians that may be critical of the current government. Considering the fact that the teenagers were just 14-years old at the time of their arrest, and how deliberately unrealisticMinecraft’s house-building techniquesare in most cases, the five-year prison sentence may seem particularly Draconian in this context.
Minecraftis currently available on PC, Mac, Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series, Android, and iOS platforms.
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