RUSSIAN GAY HATE LEADER SENT TO PRISON

The man behind the extremist Russian group responsible for humiliating and torturing gay people, including a Swazi youth, has received a prison sentence.

According to Interfax, Maxim Martsinkevich was found guilty of “incitement of hatred or hostility and humiliation of human dignity”, and sentenced to five years in a penal colony.

Marcinkiewicz previously spent three and a half years in prison for inciting hatred on ethnic or religious grounds.

He was arrested in Cuba in January after fleeing Russia when it became clear that the authorities intended to prosecute him.

Extremist right-wing videos posted to Russian social network site VKontakte were the main evidence in his trial, but it is unclear if any of the anti-gay videos or abuses he instigated were included in the case.

In South Africa, Marcinkiewicz is best known for being behind the Occupy Paedophilia group which became notorious for its “sting operations” in which it lured young gay men into being abused and humiliated. Videos of the attacks were posted on Russian social media sites.

In November last year, a video surfaced online that showed a 20-year-old gay Swazi student being forced to strip, simulate oral sex on a beer bottle and say racist slurs by Occupy Paedophilia thugs.

The victim, who was first thought to be a South African studying in Russia, was also slapped, had his hair shaved and was made to kiss a watermelon, which was then smashed into his face.

The youth later returned to Swaziland. He was reported to have been traumatised by the experience.

Martsinkevich’s lawyer has said that he will appeal the verdict. Nine other members of Occupy Paedophilia are reported to be awaiting trial, set to start in September.