Russian Queer Blogger Gets Three Years In Prison On Pornography Charges

 

By RFE/RL's Russian Service

A Moscow court on December 27 sentenced noted queer blogger Khilmi Oleinik (aka Khilmi Forks) to three years in prison on a charge of producing and online distribution of pornographic images with his participation. After the sentence was pronounced, Oleinik, 29, who had been ordered not to leave Moscow during the investigation and trial, was immediately arrested and taken away by guards. Oleinik's lawyer, Konstantin Yerokhin, said his client pleaded guilty and cooperated with investigators. The probe against Oleinik was initiated by lawmakers who accused him of propagating gay relations, which is a crime in Russia.