Russian comedian jailed for nearly six years over war veteran joke
Ostanin was convicted of inciting hatred and insulting religious feelings over jokes about a war veteran and Jesus, amid Russia's tightened censorship laws since the Ukraine war.
- A Moscow court on February 4, 2026, sentenced Artemy Ostanin to five years and nine months in prison after being found guilty of inciting hatred and insulting religious feelings.
- Call of the People filed a police complaint, leading to Ostanin's arrest in Belarus in March 2025 after a performance went viral online.
- The trial opened on Jan. 12, a state prosecutor requested five years and 11 months, and Ostanin was fined 300,000 rubles alongside a slightly reduced sentence.
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35 Articles
In early February, stand-up comedian Artemy Ostanin was sentenced to five years and nine months for “inciting hatred” and “insulting the feelings of believers”. In March 2025, the Meshchansky Court in Moscow sent him to jail because of jokes he made while filming 60 Seconds in Moscow in December 2024. Ostanin joked about Jesus Christ and the legless man on the subway “blown up by a mine” — these words were seen by pro-government activists as “ri…
In Russia, a comedian made a joke about a war veteran and has now been sentenced to nearly six years in prison. Artemi Ostanin had said at a stand-up show in March 2025 that he had been hit by a "legless skateboarder" on the subway. The "Idiot" had stepped on a mine. Ostanin had neither mentioned Ukraine nor the war there directly. Nevertheless, Kremlin-faithful media spread a video online and called on the comedian to punish him for insulting a…
Russia jails stand-up comedian for six years over joke about wounded soldiers
Putin’s regime is tightening censorship as the war in Ukraine drags on, sentencing stand-up comedian Artemy Ostanin to a lengthy prison term over a joke about amputee soldiers; Kremlin supporters accused him of ‘crossing a red line’; he fled Russia but was extradited by Belarus
A stand-up comedian has been sentenced to a long prison sentence in Russia. Russian comedian Artemi Ostanin has to go to the penal camp for almost six years. In addition, he is supposed to pay 300,000 rubles, which is almost 4,000 US dollars.
Artemij Ostanin is also convicted of insulting Christians with a tasteless joke about Jesus that angered Orthodox nationalists.
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