Arrest of Vladimir Putin viral video
| External video | |
|---|---|
 Original video, with English subtitles |
"Arrest of Vladimir Putin: A Report from the Courtroom" is a viral video, originally posted on YouTube on February 13, 2012 by the Russian video publishing group "Lancelot". The mock video shows Russian President (then Prime Minister) Vladimir Putin facing a courtroom trial. The footage was taken from the real-life trial of Mikhail Khodorkovsky and then digitally altered to make a faux news report. Putin's reply to the judge is taken from television footage where Putin is participating in the 2010 census.[1]
The video was viewed nearly 3 million times within three days[1] and as of December 17, 2014 has over 7 million views. Khodorkovsky's legal team placed a link to the video on his Twitter feed.[2] The video was also reposted at the LiveJournal blog of Alexey Navalny.[3]
Putin's supporters made their own prank video in response, titled "Russia Without Putin – Russia Without a Future". The video plays on the popular "Russia without Putin" chant that was frequently used during the opposition protests in Russia.
Following the posting of Putin's mock arrest, it was revealed that its video is a trailer of the unreleased Russian documentary A Coup On Russia, filmed in 2002.[4]
