Six years for a joke. The surreal trial of the Russian comedian Artemy Ostanin concludes with a prison sentence for “organised” joking

Judge Olesya Mendeleeva delivered the verdict on February 4, satisfying the prosecution’s request almost in its entirety. The state prosecutor had asked for five years and eleven months; the final sentence was reduced by only two months.

Following the announcement of the verdict, the judge asked the defendant if the sentence was clear. “Earth to you with your judicial practice!” Ostanin shouted in response. “Is the verdict clear to you?” Mendeleeva repeated. “No, it is not!” Ostanin replied. She proceeded to repeat the verdict but Ostanin intervened, saying that he was not guilty. “That means it is clear,” the judge concluded, before closing the session.

The Charges

The charges against Artemy Ostanin stemmed from two stand-up shows from early 2025 which the ultra-loyalist activists and the prosecution claimed insulted the religious feelings of Christians, contained hostile remarks regarding disabled people in the context of the war in Ukraine. 

“The audience is presented with an image of a disabled person as ridiculous and evoking revulsion... in contrast to Ostanin’s own image,” prosecution’s experts found. The prosecution, following the claims of pro-goverment activists from the “Zov Naroda” group, linked this joke loosely to Russia’s war in Ukraine. Ostanin rejected the notion that he implied the disabled man was a war veteran. 

The second count involved a joke where Ostanin imagined meeting Jesus Christ. Ostanin performed at the club in front of an audience “of no fewer than five people” and said: “I turned to Jesus and he answered me, imagine that. We sat down, had a few drinks…”. “I brought people some info, and do you know what they did? Well, they crucified me.”

The prosecution also alleged that Ostanin had formed an “organised criminal group” solely to create and perform these jokes. In his final statement, Ostanin dismissed this as “pure delirium” and the “wet fantasy” of the investigator, designed only to justify his pre-trial detention.

“Cruel lawlessness”

Several people recognised as victims in the case testified in court. All described themselves as believers who said they had come across recordings of Ostanin’s performances online, including on VK social network, and felt offended.

One point that provoked particular anger was Ostanin’s remark about Christ’s abs on display while hanging on the cross. One woman told the court that the obscene language used in the religious monologue amounted to “the language of demons”.

During the final hearings, Ostanin maintained his innocence but offered a conditional apology regarding the religious content. “If I offended anyone’s feelings with my words, I apologise... It was unintentional,” he told the court.

He described the trial as “cruel lawlessness,” noting that he had already been punished extrajudicially. Ostanin was detained in March 2025 at the Belarusian border: Belarusian security services beat him, crudely cut his dreadlocks off, and threatened to slit his throat. Belarusian anonymous Telegram channels shared images of him in handcuffs, with one showing a meat grinder around his neck, referencing a monologue about gifts to war victims’ families. A medical examination later recorded a fracture in his spine. On March 19, the Meshchansky District Court of Moscow formally arrested Ostanin.