Russian court convicts German sculptor in absentia for depicting Putin and patriarch in sex act

German sculptor Jacques Tilly, the creator of a carnival float showing Russian President Vladimir Putin and Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill engaging in a sex act, was sentenced in absentia by a Moscow court on Thursday to eight years and six months in prison.

Independent news outlet SOTAvision reported that the court had found Tilly guilty of spreading "false information" about the military and insulting religious believers.

The case also featured a 2024 interview with Deutsche Welle in which Tilly condemned what he called "all the bloody crimes committed by the Russian military" in Ukraine.

Tilly, who is famed for his provocative carnival creations, has denounced the charges as an assault on freedom of expression.

"There is no reason to impose such a harsh punishment on a person just because he expressed criticism - satirical criticism .... There is something ridiculous about a state like Russia being afraid of puppets, characters, and satirical criticism," he told Reuters on Thursday.

Judge Konstantin Ochirov of Moscow's Basmanny Court sentenced Tilly to serve the term in a penal colony, pay a fine of 200,000 roubles ($2,490) and be barred from administering websites for four years, none of which are enforceable as he does not reside in Russia.

SOTAvision said prosecutors had read out identical testimony from three witnesses who said they were outraged by the sculpture but did not appear in court.

It said an expert witness had testified that the figures depicted - a man in military uniform and a clergyman - were "undoubtedly Vladimir Putin and Patriarch Kirill".

Among Tilly's other creations are a float showing Putin wallowing in blood in a bathtub in the blue and yellow colours of the Ukrainian flag. Another depicted him and U.S. President Donald Trump devouring Europe.

Tilly has said his floats are intended to provoke and challenge political power, targeting a range of leaders including Putin, Trump and Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan.

($1 = 80.4000 roubles)