A resident of Kuban was convicted of arson of a communication tower in Korenovsk.
The military court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Kuban resident Alexey Ladygin to a long term, finding him guilty of arson of a cellular communication tower.
Ladygin was charged with committing a terrorist act causing significant damage (paragraph "b" of part 2 of article 205 of the Criminal Code of Russia). This article provides for a prison term of 12 to 20 years.
According to the prosecution's version, Ladygin, while in Korenovsk, wanted to commit arson since February 24, 2022. He decided to carry out his plan only in the summer of 2025, choosing a cellular communication tower located in the same city for the arson.
The tower chosen by Ladygin for arson was, among other things, used to disseminate the signal "drone danger" and to warn residents about emergencies. The accused prepared an incendiary mixture on July 29, 2025, walked to the tower, and set it on fire, the press service of the Southern District Military Court reported today.
The court sentenced Alexey Ladygin to 12 years in a strict regime, with the first four years to be served in prison. The court's statement does not specify whether the defendant agreed with the charges. The "Caucasian Knot" currently has no comments from Ladygin or his lawyer regarding plans to appeal the verdict.
Despite the sentence under the "terrorist" article, Alexey Ladygin's name is absent from the register of terrorists and extremists of Rosfinmonitoring as of 22:50 Moscow time today.
The "Caucasian Knot" reported that after the start of hostilities in Ukraine, arson of equipment on railways and mobile communication stations has repeatedly occurred in the southern regions of Russia, including in Adygea. For instance, in September 2025, a case against three young people, including two teenagers, accused of arson of a cellular tower in the village of Tlyustenkhabl and a railway locomotive in Krasnodar, was submitted to the court.
In criminal cases about arson, a typical formulation often appears: allegedly "unidentified persons" force people to film the arsons and then send them to the "customer." Such a narrative in a large number of criminal cases indicates that investigators have found a simple way to prove crimes, noted legal scholar Roman Melnychenko earlier.