A participant in four wars was condemned for a poster with Z and V splashed with paint

A court in the Tambov region sentenced local resident Oleg Borysenko to six years of conditional imprisonment and a fine of 150,000 rubles, who splashed paint on a poster with the letters Z and V. Sota reports.

Borysenko was found guilty under the article of repeated discrediting of the Russian army and possession of gunpowder. The prosecutor demanded that he be sentenced to six years of real time in a general regime colony and a fine.

According to Borysenko, he fought in Yugoslavia, Chechnya, Syria, and from 2014 to 2015 took part in the conflict in eastern Ukraine as part of PMC “Wagner”. He explained his concession by the fact that the letters Z and V remind him of the symbols of Nazi Germany. Borysenko claims that the gunpowder found in his house was bought a long time ago for hunting. It is reported that he voluntarily gave it to employees of law enforcement agencies.

In court, Borysenko declared that he was opposing the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

In 2022, Borysenko was fined 30,000 rubles. An administrative case was filed against him for “discrediting” the army because of an anti-war sticker on his car.

• Latin letters Z and V are unofficial symbols of support for the military invasion of Ukraine. They can often be found at pro-Kremlin events, propaganda posters and merchandise. Since the beginning of the war, they have been used for tactical marking of Russian military equipment.