The organiser of BDSM parties in Yekaterinburg, a major city in the Urals, has been sentenced to 200 hours of community service.

A magistrates’ court in Yekaterinburg, a major city in the Urals, has sentenced BDSM party organiser Stanislav Slovikovsky to 200 hours of community service for “offending religious feelings” (Article 148, Part 1 of the Russian Criminal Code). This was reported by Mediazona.

The case was opened because of three photographs posted on the channel of the Ark project, which organises BDSM parties. Investigators claimed that religious symbols were depicted: a wreath of branches on a woman’s head was deemed to be a crown of thorns, while structural beams arranged in an X shape were considered to be an Orthodox cross. Slovikovsky was also accused over photos of people holding signs with the names of the seven deadly sins written on them.

The defendant does not admit guilt. He says he did not consider the symbols to be religious and had no intention of offending believers’ feelings. Mediazona quotes from a written statement Slovikovsky gave to journalists before the hearing: “There is not a single victim whose feelings had been hurt before the case was launched.” In court, Slovikovsky described himself as a believer and showed a Bible from his collection.

The case became public in May 2024. Slovikovsky was detained following a night-time raid on a party held at the “Volna” recreation centre. No pre-trial restrictions were imposed.

According to investigators, in one photo a woman was wearing a wreath that “resembled a crown of thorns,” and in another, she posed in front of a metal structure that law enforcement saw as a cross. The photos were published in September 2023.