The event had a strong effect on other passengers, who started rushing out of the car as soon as the train reached its station, creating a real risk of a stampede and injuries.
The whole scene was filmed on camera and turned out be a prank, staged by blogger Karomat Dzhaborov and his friends.
The footage, uploaded online a week ago, was seen by many, including the police. Law enforcement has said the pranksters had deliberately “provoked panic” on the subway and also suspected them of hooliganism, which is quite a serious offense, carrying a maximum punishment of five years in prison or major fines.
After learning about the charges against him, Dzhaborov handed himself in at the Prosecutor’s Office.
The blogger’s lawyer said his client didn’t expect that the clip would lead to such harsh consequences. He claimed that Dzhaborov’s intentions were good when he staged his prank. “The aim was to attract public attention to the lack of face masks; to the problem of the coronavirus and the need for people to protect themselves with masks,” he explained.
A prankster is facing up to five years in prison for causing panic on the Moscow underground pic.twitter.com/wUnrrCyqJl
— RT (@RT_com) February 12, 2020
But it’s the investigators who will now be looking into Dzhaborov’s motives, as the court ordered the detention of the prankster for 30 days, pending the probe.
Two of the prankster’s accomplices were detained by the police later on Monday and have been placed under travel restrictions. Computers and smartphones with evidence in the case were seized from their homes.
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