Particle.news
Download on the App Store

St. Petersburg Court Jails Stoptime Musicians for Third Time Over Anti‑War Street Songs

Rights advocates call the back‑to‑back 13‑day terms “carousel arrests” meant to prolong detention without filing criminal cases.

Diana Loginova, left, an 18-year-old Russian singer of Stoptime street band who served two consecutive 13-day prison sentences on various misdemeanor charges, talks with her mother Irina in a courtroom in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky
Diana Loginova, an 18-year-old Russian singer of Stoptime street band who served two consecutive 13-day prison sentences on various misdemeanor charges, sits during a court session in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky
Diana Loginova, an 18-year-old Russian singer of Stoptime street band who served two consecutive 13-day prison sentences on various misdemeanor charges, sits during a court session in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky
Diana Loginova, an 18-year-old Russian singer of Stoptime street band who served two consecutive 13-day prison sentences on various misdemeanor charges, sits during a court session in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Dmitri Lovetsky

Overview

  • On November 11, the Lenin District Court sentenced singer Diana Loginova (Naoko) and guitarist Alexander Orlov to another 13 days over a public‑order offense tied to organizing a mass gathering during their street performances.
  • RFE/RL reported the court classified the latest offense as violating regulations for public movement and refused a defense request to summon the complainants and the police who compiled the case.
  • The rulings mark their third consecutive short jail term since the initial October 15 arrests, with both musicians re‑detained immediately after prior releases; drummer Vladislav Leontyev previously served two short sentences.
  • Loginova has also been fined 30,000 rubles for “discrediting the Russian armed forces” after performing songs by exiled artists Noize MC and Monetochka, and a court in May banned the Swan Lake–related track cited in the case.
  • Solidarity performances in cities such as Perm and Yekaterinburg have led to additional detentions and fines for other street musicians, according to rights groups.