Mikhail, a young police officer in the northern Russian city of Petrozavodsk, has been scaring the bejesus out of residents of his apartment block with his hobby of running up and down a dark, poorly lit stairwell for exercise.
Local newspapers have explained that the resident of the 16 story building climbs a total of 2,880 steps to reach the summit, all while wearing a portable flashlight on his head.
Not all his neighbors understand the strange hobby, and the officer has been known to scare weekend partiers and housewives, who step out onto the stairwell's balconies for a view of the city. Others support the young lieutenant, and have nicknamed him 'BatMent' ['ment' meaning cop in Russian]; his fans say, "let him run; it gives us a sense of calm, and hooligans definitely won't be bothering our building."
"Do not be afraid, I am not a maniac! On the contrary, my duty is to save the world!," the guardian of peace and justice told a frightened housewife who was caught off-guard while smoking on the balcony when he jumped out of the shadows with a lantern on his head. "But smoking is harmful and forbidden in the stairwell," he added.
