MOSCOW, February 21 (RAPSI) – Moscow’s Zamoskvoretsky District Court on Thursday extended detention of Igor Podporin, the man who had allegedly damaged Ilya Repin’s painting “Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan 16 November 1581” at the Tretyakov Gallery, until August 14, the court’s press service told RAPSI.

Moreover, the court postponed pre-trial hearings until February 26.

Podporin is charged with damage or destruction of most valuable objects of cultural heritage.

The incident took place on the evening of May 25, 2018, just five minutes before the museum’s closing, the Tretyakov Gallery’s press service said. The man ran into the empty hall of works by Repin and bashed the painting using a metal stanchion. Podporin broke through the glass encasing the well-known work of art depicting the horrified tsar and his dying son and ripped the canvas in multiple places, the statement read.

According to case papers, damage caused by Podporin is estimated at around 500,000 rubles (about $8,000); the restoration cost will range from 5 to 10 million rubles ($80,000 – 155,000).

The defendant pleaded guilty in court. If convicted, he could face up to 6 years in prison.