A 20-year-old man has been charged with a hate crime in connection with the March 18, 2007 vandalization of a Shul in Voronezh [as reported HERE on YW]. The suspect, whom prosecutors described as having past connections to for far-right hate groups, was charged with vandalism and an act aimed at inciting inter-ethnic or inter-religious hatred. He reportedly asserted under interrogation that he painted a swastika on the synagogue while under the influence of alcohol. 

Most cases of vandalism directed against minority religious sites or cemeteries are prosecuted in Russia under vandalism or “hooliganism” statutes, making the hate crimes charge in this case a relatively rare incident of prosecutors using the full extent of the law.