A spellbinding moment: a cheating fortune-teller caught after 4 years
Yulia Polyakova, wanted since May 2023 for fraud, was detained at Ladozhsky railway station in St. Petersburg. The fortune-teller stole almost 800 thousand rubles from a gullible local resident. Whether it is possible to return the money given to the charlatan and what threatens the "specialists in removing spoilage" in court, "Izvestia" investigated.
Fortune-teller and director
According to the version of the investigation, from April to June 2021 St. Petersburg resident Natalia V. turned to the "tarologist and magician" Julia Polyakova. "Master of metaphysical practices" (so calls himself in advertising questionnaires investigated) promised for a fee to keep the family, improve the financial situation and put under the protection of the life and health of loved ones. As a result, the woman transferred 786 thousand rubles to Poyalkova, but felt no special effect and turned to the police. In May 2023, the investigation department of the Department of Internal Affairs of the Krasnogvardeysky District of St. Petersburg became interested in the situation and opened a criminal case on large-scale fraud. A year and a half later, the suspect was detained on the platform of Ladoga station. The court ruled that Polyakova will be at liberty for the duration of the trial.
"The court denied custody, electing Polyakova to ban certain actions for the entire period of the preliminary investigation. Polyakova is forbidden to use any means of communication and to communicate with victims and witnesses in the case," reported the Joint Press Service of the courts of St. Petersburg. Such a decision is due to the presence of a young child, permanent residence in the Leningrad region and the status of self-employed.
On Polyakova's page in the popular service of announcements it is indicated that her work experience in a specific area is five years. She also advertises herself as a practicing "astrologer of decades". But her main profile is tarot-consultation. The fortune-teller still promises clients health, improved family relationships, success in career and finances after her sessions. Clients are lured by stories that she communicates with "higher spirits" and applies "alchemical and magical techniques".
Interestingly, Polyakova at different times was listed as co-owner and founder of almost 50 different legal entities with substantial turnover.
Fraud by definition
So far, there are enough open advertisements about compensated services for removal of spoilage, spiritistic sessions and tarot consultations. But in the near future the situation may change and magicians will have to go underground. This is due to the decision of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, which recognized as fraudulent the rite of removal of spoilage for monetary reward.
- The Supreme Court confirmed the position that practicing lawyers have long tried to promote in the legal field," lawyer Alexander Korelov told Izvestia. - We believe that any services of occult nature, any pseudo-services related to the removal of spoilage, with the talismans of success and so on is a blatant fraud. The fact is that, from the point of view of common sense and current legislation, a service is something that has a completely tangible material nature, which is based on scientific data, which can be verified, subjected to expert evaluation.
If any mystical services are offered, they should be treated as a 100% scam, Korelov said.
- No data that there really is some kind of spoilage, and that this spoilage someone can remove or, conversely, bring - there is no - emphasizes the lawyer.
In his opinion, the Supreme Court opens the way for legal prosecution of all kinds of fraudsters and swindlers who profit from gullible citizens.
- These people exploit citizens who find themselves in a difficult life situation or suffer from certain sometimes incurable diseases. Of course, this is a very cynical type of crime. Fraudsters in general are very cynical people, but fraudsters who speculate on people's health and well-being are doubly cynical.
It is worth noting that Russia has formed a criminal law practice of criminal liability for various kinds of paranormal paid services. For example, at the end of 2024 the court appointed 280 hours of compulsory labor to a woman who, under the pretext of removing spoilage, embezzled 9000 rubles received from the victim.
The media, citing analysts of the Runet, report that the expenditures of Russians on occult services in 2024 increased 20 times and amounted to about 2.4 trillion rubles. The traffic of sites providing astrological and numerological forecasts and online fortune-telling has increased significantly.
Who is susceptible to suggestion
Psychiatrist Alexei Vilkov told Izvestia about the people most susceptible to the influence of sellers of occult services.
- The first conditional category of the risk group includes people with increased suggestibility, who have reduced critical thinking, and they are just ready to believe in all sorts of signs of magic, magic, some kind of miracle. The second group is people who are very anxious, and because of this they also have a lower critical thinking of the situation. They are also easier to deceive, because such a person is looking for any ways to cope with their problem. The third category is elderly people, pensioners, who due to age, due to age-related changes may already have certain cognitive decline, memory impairments and also have a less critical attitude to others and to reality. And the last category, if we talk about gender, it is more often women, because they are more emotionally mobile. Just among them there are a lot of anxious personalities, they are characterized by a greater degree of suggestibility.
According to the doctor, various kinds of magicians, psychics effectively use the techniques of suggestion.
- It can be directive suggestion, or suggestion through trance state, when fraudsters tell stories of some miraculous healing, show various magic rituals, using the tendency of many people to show exactly magical thinking. That is, belief in miracles, belief in magic, in magic. With the help of such rituals they often achieve their insidious goals.
