With Russia in the throes of a significant fuel shortage, the country's social media has been flooded with ads from phony mystics looking to exploit the situation. Claiming to possess all manner of fantastic powers, the con artists reportedly assert that they can improve the potency of gasoline using their 'gifts' or serve as proverbial magical mechanics, fixing the fading fuel efficiency of a victim's vehicle. The asking price for the supernatural services generally lands at around $200, though one imagines that once a client is on the hook, the faux psychic is willing to negotiate with an eye on extracting even more money as the process unfolds.

To that end, a Russian media outlet alerting the public to the peculiar trend published messages between so-called mystics and individuals who had sought out their help. In one such exchange, like a bizarre version of 'Car Talk,' the psychic proposes a convoluted ritual to remove a 'curse' afflicting the potential victim's vehicle. "I'm going to the temple, I've already ordered candles, I'll light them right now. I'll start working," declared the rather aggressive 'mystic,' who then promises a spell that the client must use to complete the ritual. Of course, should the car owner take them up on the deal, they are also strongly encouraged to pay an additional fee for what amounts to an extended warranty reliant on the psychic's powers.

Another tactic used by the crooks is to claim that they can magically improve the potency of a victim's gasoline, allowing them to stretch their ruble further for a nominal fee. As one might imagine, people in Russia are being dissuaded from pursuing the supernatural solution to their fuel consumption woes, with the media stressing that faulty vehicles should be taken to a real mechanic and that gasoline cannot be transformed with a ritual. That said, one fears that the proverb 'desperate times call for desperate measures' may apply to some Russians trying to get by during the fuel crisis and, in turn, they could fall under the spell of the sinister 'psychics.'