Trending News Channel

Pussy Riot Members Found Guilty of Hooliganism, Sentenced to Two Years Each

Pussy Riot won’t be performing concerts anytime soon, unfortunately, unless they let you rock in Russian prison.

The three members of the punk rock collective were found guilty and each sentenced to two years in prison for “hooliganism driven by religious hatred” after staging an anti-Vladimir Putin concert at Moscow’s largest church in February. 

Prosecution witnesses accused the rockers of sacrilege and “devilish dances,” testimony the judge read to them as they sat in a glassed-off cage.  

The case has drawn international criticism from the likes of Amnesty International and Red Hot Chili Peppers’ bassist Flea. Hundreds of protesters chanted, “Russia without Putin!” outside the courtroom during sentencing, and many were booked by the police, including former world chess champion Gary Kasparov, an ardent critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. 

Putin said he wished the band members weren’t sentenced too harshly. Of course, with all his power, Putin could probably do something about it—in a country where a man can apparently be president as often as he wants, you’d think a presidential pardon would be a piece of cake.