Police in the Republic of North Ossetia-Alania have detained a 62-year-old woman from Beslan on suspicion of defrauding a soldier's sister out of 180,000 rubles.
The victim, a 43-year-old resident of Vladikavkaz, contacted an online psychic after growing anxious about her brother, who is currently serving in Russia's military campaign in Ukraine, according to law enforcement officials.
The suspect, operating online under the alias Svetlana, claimed upon contact that a dangerous curse had been cast on the soldier. She assured the woman that she could lift the spell through a series of rituals, demanding 180,000 rubles for the service.
After receiving the money, the suspect severed all communication with the victim without conducting any of the promised rituals. Realizing she had been deceived, the victim reported the fraud to local law enforcement.
Police investigation and detention
Officers from the regional criminal investigation department tracked down the suspect at her residence in Beslan and took her into custody. The press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for North Ossetia told news outlet Lenta.ru that the woman is currently being held under a recognizance not to leave, a standard legal restriction preventing a suspect from departing their registered home region during an ongoing investigation.
The Republic of North Ossetia-Alania is located in the North Caucasus region of southern Russia, bordering Georgia to the south. Vladikavkaz serves as the administrative center and largest city of the republic, while Beslan is a municipal town situated roughly 15 kilometers to the north. Russia officially designates its ongoing military actions in Ukraine as a special military operation.
Precedent of psychic scams in Russia
Fraud schemes involving fake fortune tellers targeting anxious family members have repeatedly drawn concern from law enforcement in Russia. In a separate case cited by police, an online psychic in the Siberian city of Tyumen swindled a woman out of 500,000 rubles after falsely promising that the spirit of former Soviet leader Josef Stalin would intervene to return her ex-husband.
