"VAN" (International Desk) :: A district court in St. Petersburg has sanctioned the arrest of another Russian national, Nikita Semyonov, who was detained on Sunday for plotting terror attacks during the New Year holidays, the press service of the St. Petersburg courts said on Monday. Semyonov was charged with participation in terrorist activity (part 2, article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code). The man’s defense lawyers asked the court to place him under house arrest but the court rules to place him in custody till February 29, 2020. Earlier in the day, the Dzerzhinsky district court sanctioned the arrest of Georgy Chernyshev who had been detained on the same charges. According to earlier reports, the two men began to give confession. According to the local media, the young men were selecting places for terror attacks. The Kazan Cathedral in the center of the city and the Gallery retail and leisure center near the Moskovsky railway terminal were chosen as scenes of potential terror attacks. Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) said earlier that two Russian nationals had been detained on December 27 on the basis of information shared by US partners. The two reportedly planned to commit terror attacks in St. Petersburg during the New Year holidays. Cr :: TASS
On Mon, Jun 30, 2025