Woman sentenced for leaving a note on Putin's parents' grave asking them to take him

A St Petersburg court has sentenced Irina Tsibaneva, 60, to two years’ probation for leaving a note on the grave of the Russian president’s parents, asking them to take Vladimir Putin.

Source: Novaya Gazeta Europe, an independent Russian newspaper; Sever.Realii, a Radio Liberty project

Details: The case was opened in 2022 after the Russian woman left a note at the grave of Vladimir Putin’s parents at the Serafimovskoye Cemetery in St Petersburg on 6 October, the eve of Putin’s birthday. The note read: "To the maniac’s parents: Please take him. He brings so much pain and sorrow, and the whole world is praying for his death. Death to Putin. You raised a monster and a murderer."

At the time, the court placed the woman under house arrest. She has now been found guilty of "desecrating burial sites for reasons of political hatred". Tsibaneva was also placed on probation for a two-year period.

The pensioner says that her actions were not motivated by "political hatred": "I was consumed by fear after watching the news, I felt awful. I was so consumed by it that I couldn’t handle it, and that must be what I’m guilty of."

Journalists fight on their own frontline. Support Ukrainska Pravda or become our patron!