A former Russian youth leader has been found guilty of justifying terrorism after publishing an anti-LGBT rant in support of the gunman who opened fire on a U.S. gay bar.
Ramil Ibragimov, the now ex-president of the Tatarstan Union of Young Innovators, was fined 50,000 rubles, ($832) but escaped a three-year jail term.
He also saw his iPhone confiscated by the court as "an instrument of the crime," the E-Kazan regional news outlet reported.
Ibragimov posted his anti-gay tirade on Instagram in June 2016, just hours after American citizen Omar Mateen opened fire on LGBT clubgoers at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida.
“In Orlando (USA), some upright Afghan guy shot a gay nightclub to s***! 50 f*****s! Another 53 are now in the hospital,” Ibragimov wrote. “We hope that they die too. The Union of Young Innovators absolutely support this decisive action!”
The post was later deleted, but had been shared widely on social media.
Mateen had pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, a terrorist organization banned in Russia, in the hours before the attack. Some 49 people died and 53 more were injured as a result of his actions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin was among the world leaders who sent their condolences to the White House following the attack, which he described as "barbaric."
In a telegram sent to the U.S. president, Putin said that Russia shared the pain and sorrow of those who had lost their loved ones, and was hoping for the quick recovery of the wounded.
