Man who climbed Moscow billboard with banner reading ‘Putin, where are you, bitch, make room for me’ jailed for 15 days

A man arrested last week in Moscow for climbing a billboard and displaying a banner that read, “Putin, where are you, bitch, make room for me,” has been sentenced to 15 days in jail on charges of disobeying police, according to the TV network RTVI.

The court ruling states that officers repeatedly asked Dmitry Shapovalov to come down from the billboard, but he “ignored their instructions” and later “resisted and physically obstructed them.” Shapovalov reportedly pleaded guilty, explaining that he staged the act to express his political views.

“He sat there for about two hours, after which police officers arrived and, after learning his name, asked him to climbed down. He refused, as he had decided to stay there for a bit longer. After sitting for about another 30 minutes, he saw several police vehicles and an ambulance arrive. Then he decided to climb down on his house because he was cold. He did not resist the police officers,” the ruling states, citing Shapovalov’s own statements.