Zero tolerance to prank calls: Russia to increase imprisonment for “telephone terrorism”
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Moscow, January 1: Rumours are the worst source of anxiety or panic among the public. A single telephone call sometimes creates disaster by spreading fake news of some terror activity. To put an end to this menace, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a law that toughens the punishment for "telephone terrorism" to 10 years of imprisonment.
False report on a planned explosion, arson or other activities that could pose threat to people or aggravate any kind of damage of property can lead to imprisonment of three to five years. If such disaster causes a single death, imprisonment can be of 8 to 10 years. Earlier, the maximum penalty was of up to 5 years.
Last year, Russia faced major problem from anonymous phone calls with a warning of terror attacks which were later proved false. Over 2.3 million people were being evacuated in 186 cities across the country leading to financial losses having amounted to 150 million rubles in Moscow only.