Russia pursues vandalism charges over 'offensive' anti-Putin graffiti

MOSCOW - Agence France-Presse

A banner, illustrating an image of Russia's President Vladimir Putin and reading 'Putin is afraid of Navalny' is seen at a street in Kirov, July 18. REUTERS photo

Russian police said on July 20 it would pursue vandalism charges over graffiti deriding President Vladimir Putin scrawled on the parliament building in Moscow.

Several thousand protesters took to the streets of central Moscow on July 18 evening to protest the sentencing of Putin's top critic, Alexei Navalny, to five years in a penal colony on embezzlement charges.

During the rallies some protesters apparently scrawled "Putin is a thief" and "Putin is gay" on the building of the lower house of parliament, the State Duma, which is not far from the Kremlin, an AFP photographer said.

Signs put up on the windows of the Duma read: "Navalny for president, Putin to jail", while dozens of red round stickers were emblazoned with the word "Navalny". Some of the graffiti on the windows were mirror written so that they could be read from inside the parliament building.

Police said on July 20 it had opened a criminal case into vandalism.

Charges may lead to three years in jail

"A criminal case has been started over putting offensive signs, placards and stickers on the building of the State Duma on July 18 2013," Moscow police said on Twitter.

Police said the charges would be brought against "unidentified people". A Moscow police spokesman confirmed to AFP the case had been opened.

The charges carry a penalty of up three years in prison.

"Do police think that the State Duma building could be defiled with stickers?" Navalny, who earlier Saturday returned to Moscow from a provincial city where he was jailed and then suddenly released on appeal, quipped on Twitter.

Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on July 19 that while "constructive criticism" was welcome, offence was not acceptable.
 
Critics accuse Putin of presiding over an unprecedented clampdown on the opposition after returning to the Kremlin for a third presidential term last year.

Twelve Russians are now on trial over their involvement in mass riots in the centre of Moscow that suddenly descended into violence on the eve of Putin's inauguration.