A 31-year-old Russian man was recently convicted to 4.4 years in a penal colony for promising to urinate on a symbol of the Russian military in a comment he posted on social media.

The incident that led to the conviction of 31-year-old Alexander Panasenko occurred in May of 2024, when the Kremerovo native took to social media to taunt Russian authorities. Commenting on a VKontakte post that reminded everyone that the Russian State Duma had voted into law fines and even imprisonment for damaging the St. George ribbon, Panasenko wrote “I bought it, and I’ll piss on it. And I don’t care who gets offended by it.” The comment didn’t sit too well with Kremerovo police, and the offender was quickly arrested and charged with desecrating the symbol of Russia’s military glory. A Kremerovo Regional Court recently sentenced Panasenko to four years and four months in a penal colony and banned him from posting anything on the internet for three years.