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'Now You See It...': Watch St. Petersburg's Navalny Tribute Mural Disappear

On the night of April 28, in Pushkarsky park in the center of St. Petersburg, a mural depicting Kremlin critic and Russian opposition politician Aleksei Navalny appeared on the side of a building, with the inscription "Hero of a New Time."

Police said a probe has been launched into "vandalism motivated by political, ideological, racial, ethnic, or religious hatred." Investigators believe that several artists worked on the mural.
The mural depicted Navalny making the heart gesture to his wife from a glass defendants' cage in a Moscow courtroom in early February after he was sentenced and taken away to a Russian prison for 2 1/2 years.
1 The mural depicted Navalny making the heart gesture to his wife from a glass defendants' cage in a Moscow courtroom in early February after he was sentenced and taken away to a Russian prison for 2 1/2 years.
It only took a few hours before police in President Vladimir Putin's hometown arrived and the authorities ordered that it be painted over.
2 It only took a few hours before police in President Vladimir Putin's hometown arrived and the authorities ordered that it be painted over.
3
A work crew quickly arrived with buckets of yellow paint.
4

A work crew quickly arrived with buckets of yellow paint.
Several people commented on Twitter that the police acted quicker in response to the mural than they do for violent crimes.
5 Several people commented on Twitter that the police acted quicker in response to the mural than they do for violent crimes.
Navalny was arrested in January upon his return to Russia from Germany, where he received life-saving treatment for a poisoning attack in Siberia in August 2020 that he blames on Putin and Russia's security services. The Kremlin denies any role.
6 Navalny was arrested in January upon his return to Russia from Germany, where he received life-saving treatment for a poisoning attack in Siberia in August 2020 that he blames on Putin and Russia's security services. The Kremlin denies any role.
In February, a Moscow court ruled that Navalny had violated the terms of parole from an old embezzlement case while he was seeking treatment in Germany.
7

In February, a Moscow court ruled that Navalny had violated the terms of parole from an old embezzlement case while he was seeking treatment in Germany.
Navalny's incarceration has sparked numerous protests across Russia, which have been violently dispersed by police.
8 Navalny's incarceration has sparked numerous protests across Russia, which have been violently dispersed by police.
9
"The beautiful St. Petersburg graffiti with Navalny was quickly painted over. This is how they transform everything 'alive' and beautiful into faceless and 'dead,'" Navalny lawyer Lyubov Sobol said on Twitter. "We have Russia for happiness, they have it for despondency and stagnation."
10 "The beautiful St. Petersburg graffiti with Navalny was quickly painted over. This is how they transform everything 'alive' and beautiful into faceless and 'dead,'" Navalny lawyer Lyubov Sobol said on Twitter. "We have Russia for happiness, they have it for despondency and stagnation."
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