Investigators came to search the publishing house that publishes books about Fandorin

Previously, Boris Akunin was included in the list of extremists and terrorists and a criminal case was opened against him

The Zakharov publishing house, which publishes the bulk of Boris Akunin’s books, reported on its telegram channel that on the afternoon of December 19, the Investigative Committee came to them with a search. There is virtually no doubt that this is connected with the criminal case opened against Akunin under the article on public justification of terrorism and the dissemination of fakes about the Russian army.

In the same telegram channel a message appeared: “Two (IC employees) went to the publishing house’s warehouse. The warehouse is closed. They said they would open it.” Allegedly, there is an intention to “withdraw the circulation of Akunin’s books,” but the publishing house employees do not want to give up the book reserves.

Writers recognized as foreign agents, Dmitry Bykov and Boris Akunin, as they say, “talked themselves into an article.” In a conversation with Vovan and Lexus (who called on behalf of Andrei Ermak, the head of Zelensky’s Office) back on December 11, Bykov admitted his sympathies for Ukraine, begging to be sent to Nezalezhnaya “to teach or clear away” (apparently, rubble), without fear of “dirty work” ” And not only. For everything that was said, Bykov paid by being included in the lists of foreign agents by the Ministry of Justice. Akunin told the pranksters that he treats the “formula” “a good Russian is a dead Russian” with understanding and “without offense or pretension,” however, he immediately made the reservation that “this course needs adjustment,” since Russia in a military sense it is impossible to win. The writer speculated at length about the “danger emanating from Moscow” and the need to organize assistance in the relocation of “deserters from the Russian army” to Europe. Feeling attention and approval from the other side of the screen (it was supposedly a Ukrainian minister who called him), the author of books about Erast Fandorin went so far as to call for joining an anti-Russian paramilitary group, recognized in the Russian Federation as a terrorist organization at the level of the Supreme Court.

The reaction to the scandalous video was immediate. In the list of terrorists and extremists of Rosfinmonitoring (in the “Individuals” section), line number four appeared: “Grigory Shalvovich Chkhartishvili. Born 20.05.1956 ” (Chkhartishvili is Akunin’s real surname*).

The law is the law: Russian publishers immediately suspended the “shipment” of Akunin’s books, and Russian theaters, in particular the RAMT and the Provincial Theater, canceled all performances, although previously they limited themselves to half measures, removing the name of the opposition writer from the posters (which, however, hardly confused It was of no use to the audience: they understood that they were going to see productions based on Akunin, to whom the Fandorin “brand” was assigned – and other names were 100% recognizable).

It seems that Akunin, who has been living in London for nine years, spoke out loud all these “revelations” quite consciously – as the humorist Arkady Averchenko wrote at the beginning of the 20th century, quoting Shakespeare, “there was something methodical in this madness.”

He continued to position himself as a “fighter against the regime” – this time. But perhaps a financial calculation cannot be ruled out: for a certain layer of readers, the situation will make Akunin’s books more desirable. They will probably continue to be sold in Russia, but under the counter, at prices tripled or quadrupled, as was the case with the provocative book about the gay love of Soviet pioneers after the law banning the promotion of LGBT relationships. “That same book” was sold secretly on marketplaces and passed from hand to hand, so it is possible that underground trade will bring Akunin more money than legal trade. This is probably why the Investigative Committee decided to confiscate the already printed editions.

The Russian Investigative Committee has not yet commented on what is happening.