The Office of the Investigative Committee for the Moscow Region reported on the detention of a resident of Ivanteevka on suspicion of extremism (clause “a” of Part 2 of Article 282 of the Criminal Code) and insulting the feelings of believers (Part 1 of Article 148 of the Criminal Code). According to sources from TASS and RIA Novosti, the detainee is the head of the organization “Empire of the Strongest Witches” Alena Polyn.
According to security forces, from January 2020 to December 2023, the woman sold literature with calls for “violence against clergy of the Russian Orthodox Church.” In addition, according to the Investigative Committee, the suspect published a video on social networks with “statements degrading the religious feelings of believers.”
Polyn’s house was searched, books and equipment were confiscated from her.
Alena Polyn is a former participant in the show “Battle of Psychics” on the TNT channel. She herself claims that she acquired magical knowledge from her grandmother. In 2015, the “witch” headed the “Empire of the Strongest Witches.” The organization sells courses and ritual paraphernalia — figurines of pagan gods, tambourines, masks and stones.
In 2019, the “Empire of the Strongest Witches” held a “witch convention” in support of Vladimir Putin. According to the BBC Russian Service, Wormwood’s events were supported by the Moscow mayor’s office and some State Duma deputies.
In the fall of 2023, at the request of State Duma deputy Alexander Tolmachev, the prosecutor's office checked the International University of Magic and Witchcraft, another organization created by Alena Polyn. Then the department limited itself to demanding that the word “university” be removed from the name of the institution.