A military court in St. Petersburg has sentenced Diana Chistyakova, 30, a true crime podcast host with a background in criminology, to 12 years in prison after she was manipulated by Ukrainian operatives into conducting an arson attack on a police facility.

The sentence was handed down Monday over an incident that occurred in October. According to her testimony, Chistyakova became the target of a scam that has become increasingly common in Russia in recent years. Victims are initially tricked into handing over their savings and told the money is transferred to support the Ukrainian military. The scammers then convince them they are under investigation for terrorism-related offenses and can avoid prosecution by carrying out a “covert operation.”

Authorities reported Chistyakova was instructed to prepare Molotov cocktails and attack vehicles belonging to a police unit responsible for transporting suspects to court hearings. She was apprehended while attempting to ignite her third firebomb, having failed to cause damage with the first two.

The case has drawn particular attention because Chistyakova studied criminal law at Herzen University, one of Russia’s largest educational institutions, before launching her podcast on criminal behavior.