The head of the Investigative Committee, Alexander Bastrykin, demanded a report on the results of an audit into the activities of “fashion expert” Arthur Sita, who is accused of violence against his followers, the administration’s press service reported.
Bastrykin gave appropriate instructions to the head of the Moscow department of the Investigative Committee, Dmitry Belyaev.
The Investigative Committee’s press release stated that the Ministry learned about Arthur Sita through a story broadcast by one of the federal television channels. Dozens of statements written by Sita’s former followers were reported to the investigating authorities.
Arthur Sita (real name Artur Mammadov) is the founder of the cult, a self-styled “fashion guru” who promises his followers “enlightenment” and “instant relief” from depression. Medusa wrote about him in 2024 – the article by journalist Ksenia Morozova talked about how Sita built an entire business empire on the slave labor of his followers.
In 2026, the cult was brought to public attention again when Lola Gruzdeva, co-host of the YouTube channel Sita, who had left the cult, accused its creator of abuse and harassment. Then 18-year-old Elizaveta Zotova, who joined the sect as a teenager, expressed her accusations of grooming against Sita.