Russian protester jailed 15 years for $500 Ukraine donation, curses Putin in court

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Putin’s Russia sentences Sergei Irin to 15 years hard time for making a donation to Ukraine

Former software developer with Russian tech giant Yandex, Sergei Irin, 45 sentenced to 15 years hard time for making a one time donation to a Ukraine defense fund in 2022. (Credit: East2West.)

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A Russian software developer in Moscow on Tuesday was sentenced to 15 years hard prison time for donating roughly $500 to a Ukrainian defense fund, reporting by East2West confirmed.  

Sergei Irin, 45, who at one point worked for Russian tech giant Yandex, apparently refused to stand in court as he was issued his sentence, but held up a sign that read, “Putin is a ****head.”

Former software developer with Russian tech giant Yandex, Sergei Irin, 45, held up a sign reading ‘Putin is a ****head’ as he was sentenced to 15 years in jail for treason in Moscow court on Aug. 26, 2025. (East2West)

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Irin, according to footage given to Fox News Digital, was arrested on the suspicion of treason, and was handed a 15-year sentence in a maximum-security prison for his “act of defiance,” according to the report. 

Though it is unclear if either his prison placement or the amount of time he was handed was affected by the sign he held while in court, or merely for donating to a Ukrainian defense fund. 

In the video, a man who is allegedly Irin those whose face is blurred out, is seen being tackled and handcuffed by masked police officers. 

Irin was apparently visiting his mother after having fled Russia sometime prior.

Former software developer with Russian tech giant Yandex, Sergei Irin, 45, is tackled by Russian police forces during his arrest ahead of his sentencing in a Moscow court on Aug. 26, 2025. (East2West)

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He is then questioned in a van by the men, at which point he admits that within days of Russian President Vladimir Putin launching his illegal and deadly invasion of Ukraine, Irin donated funds to Ukraine’s Come Back Alive charity, which supports Kyiv’s defense forces. 

The donation was made on Feb. 27, 2022, according to Irin.

The 45-year-old also said he feels “negatively” towards the Putin regime and admitted to having participated in opposition rallies.

Former software developer with Russian tech giant Yandex, Sergei Irin, 45, was sentenced in a Moscow court on Aug. 26, 2025. (East2West)

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The report by East2West said he was later “interrogated with a stun gun and sent by plane to Moscow, to the Lefortovo [notorious pretrial detention center].”

Irin was also issued a roughly $62,000 fine by the Russian court on Tuesday. 

It is unclear which maximum-security prison he will be sent to, to carry out his sentence.  

Caitlin McFall is a Reporter at Fox News Digital covering Politics, U.S. and World news.