VLAD’S BLUSHES
Putin the prude strikes again as Russian influencer, 23, faces 5 years in JAIL for ‘tickling the boob’ of famous statue
She's not the first to suffer under prudish Putin's morality crackdown
A RUSSIAN influencer is facing five years in jail over a video of her "tickling the boob" of a famous war statue.
Alena Agafonova, 23, had been forced to issue a public apology for her social media stunt but might spend five years in prison anyway.
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Prudish Putin has been cracking down any behaviour deemed as debauched despite being no stranger to going topless himself.
While Russia's leader is known for stripping down and showing off his impressive but steroid-infused physique, Putin has earned himself a "prudish" reputation for imposing an unprecedented new drive on traditional values.
One of the victims of the tyrant's bizarre drive, Agafonova, appeared in court pleading for house arrest.
She was instead ordered to remain in pre-trial detention until April 2 - with the full court case pending.
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Agafonova's defence appealed to the court, citing that she has no intention to hide from the investigation and realises her mistake now.
But the court ruled that she might abscond if she was put under house arrest.
Agafonova faces up to five years in jail for "desecration of a burial site" and "cynical actions that disregard the norms of morality".
The influencer was also accused of "rehabilitation of Nazism" amid Russia's crackdown on anti-patriotic behaviour sparked by the war in Ukraine.
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A law enforcement source said Agafonova “cries all the time”, and she was visibly upset in court.
Footage showed Agafonova handcuffed as a law enforcement officer read out her indictment.
He said: “I am informing you that the investigative department for the Central district of Volgograd has a criminal case against you for the desecration of a symbol of military glory of Russia, insult to the memory of defenders of the fatherland, committed with the use of the internet…”
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She landed herself in hot water after posting a video beneath The Motherland Calls monument in Volgograd, southwest Russia, on Instagram last year.
In the footage, which is now officially banned in Russia, Agafonova appeared to "tickle" the figure's right breast.
The 279ft statue of a woman wielding a sword commemorates a scene of one of the WW2's most epic battles.
The influencer went into hiding in Sri Lanka for six months soon after the film was made as she was put on Russia’s wanted list following the incident.
Upon her return to the country, she was immediately arrested and taken to Volgograd to stand a trial.
Agafonova appeared to have been ordered to issue a public apology - an increasing trend for those who flout Putin's repressive rules.
“I address all residents of Russia and Volgograd and ask everyone not to commit the acts I did last year because of my stupidity,” she said.
“I didn't even think that I could insult someone's feelings.”
“I ask all Russian citizens for forgiveness.”
The statue is among the most famous in Russia and honours heroes of the Stalingrad Battle - a decisive moment in Soviet victory against Hitler.
Putin's new morality hounds anyone who defies "traditional values" , imposing tough sentences on them.
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Russian performer, Maxim Tesli, was recently charged with "petty hooliganism", although a criminal case "looms in the future".
He went viral after appearing at a concert wearing nothing but a sock over his manhood back in January.
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