Schoolboy gets 6 years in prison for arson

A 17-year-old schoolboy in Russia was sentenced to six years in prison in a prison camp on Thursday for attempted arson attacks against military facilities.

The court in Saint Petersburg found him guilty of “attempted terrorism’’ for throwing Molotov cocktails at the buildings of two district defence offices a few months ago in protest against Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The harsh approach of the judiciary had previously caused a stir because the then-16-year-old teenager had hardly caused any damage, nor did the attempted attack lead to a fire.

The “Meduza’’ portal also reported, citing the pupil’s mother, that he was suffering from chronic liver disease.

Russian courts often sentence opponents of the war to lengthy prison sentences. Internationally, most of them were considered political prisoners.