Some Russian media outlets circulated this CCTV photo, saying the man in it was suspected of involvement in the St. Petersburg bombing. Screenshot from fontanka.ru
In the modern information-driven world a person can easily fall victim to false accusations, as the online rumor mill and click-hungry media rush to find someone to blame for various emotionally-charged crimes. The apparent bombing in the St. Petersburg Metro is just the latest example.
The Monday blast, which killed 14 people and left dozens injured, produced two cases of false accusations. Hours following the apparent bombing, a CCTV image of a man with a long beard and dressed in long clothes and a hat was leaked to several media outlets. They speculated that he was the possible organizer of the suspected terrorist attack. Hours later the man went to a police station, protesting his innocence.
The man, later named as Ilyas Nikitin, was
apparently guilty of having an appearance that conforms to the public's expectations of what a terrorist looks like. According to the IslamNews web portal, he was born in the Russian region of Bashkortostan, trained as an airborne trooper and served in the Chechen Republic, retiring with the rank of captain.
Comment: 'Me-first' journalism turned this young man's
life into a nightmare, after dozens of media outlets released blurry photos of Ilyas Nikitin before any official confirmation from police. He has been interviewed by the police three times, taken off flights, and claims he has been fired from his job. "My relatives, friends and myself are being followed by everywhere by the same reporters, who had previously called me a terrorist."
Comment: How about just moving out of California?