Stalking: How a Persecutor Turns Lives into a Living Hell
The story of a man who has stalked people for years highlights the problem of stalking. A lawyer and a lawmaker explain how to seek punishment and what laws can help.
Jan 24, 2026 0
A stock photo used to illustrate the article about stalking and its impact on victims.
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Many people face obsessive stalking that can last for years. Victims suffer from damage to their reputation, job loss, nighttime calls, and constant psychological pressure.
A group of individuals who have been targeted by the same stalker and have joined forces to seek justice.
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38-year-old Yuri is known for systematically stalking acquaintances and strangers. His victims are those who refused him employment or personal relationships. The man often presented himself as a participant in the special military operation and a member of the «Russian Community,» however, he does not actually have the status of a participant in the SMO, although he did obtain a security guard license.
Anna, a resident of St. Petersburg, managed to unite nine people who suffered from Yuri«s actions. Some of them had been trying for years to hold him accountable through law enforcement agencies, while others initially considered such attempts useless.
Anna said that about two years ago she refused to hire Yuri after reviewing his resume. In the summer of 2025, he contacted her again. The girl blocked him, but he created a new account on Telegram under a different name. After communicating and receiving flowers, Anna agreed to a meeting, where she recognized him and broke off contact.
After the unsuccessful date, massive call-and-text attacks began. Dozens of calls and messages, codes for logging into internet services, were sent to Anna«s number, and her phone number appeared in fake job advertisements.
When Anna filed a report with the police and a local police officer spoke with Yuri, the situation escalated. He stated over the phone: «As Putin says, there will always be a response. What you are doing, there will be a response to that, understand? No one will do anything. They»ll think: two idiots who are doing something to each other there.«
The threats became more serious: «You will be packed in bags and taken out of town,» «Hire security.» After appealing to the Investigative Committee, the attacks intensified.
Anna was helped to find other victims by people who called in response to the fake advertisements. They discovered similar ads with the number of another woman, whose story turned out to be even more severe.
Posting Flyers and Nighttime Knocking on the Door
Tamara (name changed) met Yuri more than 20 years ago, but stopped communicating after his strange behavior. Years later, he found her through the website of the organization where she works with children, and asked to enroll his daughter in classes. After being refused, he began to take revenge.
Flyers defaming the woman«s honor and dignity appeared on the doors of the children»s institution and near her apartment. Yuri, hiding his face with a balaclava, posted them personally, and also came to her director with questions about her professional suitability.
Fabricated correspondence and erotic photographs with Tamara«s face, made using AI, were spread on the internet. Students and acquaintances received defamatory messages.
A real nightmare was the nighttime visits by groups of people who knocked on her apartment door. It turned out that Yuri hired them supposedly to guard a non-existent seafood office.
Tamara installed a camera in the peephole. When another victim, Yaroslav, came to help, and they tried to detain the visitors, Yuri himself arrived. «When Yaroslav opened the door, they immediately sprayed a pepper spray canister in his face,» Tamara recalls.
The camera did not record the conflict. Yuri disappeared, and later threatened Yaroslav over the phone: «He will take out your entire jaw, all your teeth... We will cut everything out of you by surgical method, in short. First, we»ll cut off your [penis].« He told Tamara about plans to set her car on fire.
Prove You«re Not a Pedophile
Yaroslav met Yuri in 2022 when both were working part-time as security guards. The conflict began after Yaroslav stopped communicating due to insults directed at his mother.
In response, Yuri organized a stream of calls and messages, spread intimate details online, and posted flyers accusing Yaroslav of pedophilia. He called Yaroslav«s bosses, introducing himself as a police officer.
Yaroslav recorded the threats and appealed to law enforcement agencies. In his statement to the Investigative Committee, he indicated that Yuri called himself a «Nazi» and glorified Ukraine in a conversation.
«He Started Sending Male Genitalia»
The head of a security company, Yuri Strelnikov, has been fighting the stalker«s harassment for about five years. It all started when the stalker did not show up for his shift, causing Strelnikov to receive a penalty, and he refused to hire him in the future.
In retaliation, Yuri began using Strelnikov«s number to register on websites, sending offensive messages and images. Then he started posting fake job advertisements with his phone number, which caused calls from all over the country.
Strelnikov had to become an administrator of job search groups to remove such ads. Administrators who blocked the stalker also received threats and became targets of defamation online.
What the Stalker Himself Says
During a conversation with a friend of one of the victims, Yuri explained his motives. He stated that he punishes those who, in his opinion, deserve it, noting: «Women need to be punished.»
«I wrote to her from different accounts, in short. Job offers — that»s the most effective topic. You offer some photo shoot or good earnings, they bite, they take the bait. Then we met, back and forth,« he shared his tactics.
When asked about the correctness of his actions, he replied that only the Almighty can judge. Later, in a conversation with journalists, a man whose voice resembled Yuri«s introduced himself as Anton and denied the fact of the stalking.
According to available information, in December Yuri was in a psychiatric hospital, which led to a temporary lull. However, in January, even during treatment, according to the victims, he called them and posted new advertisements. Later, he allegedly escaped from the hospital, and his whereabouts are unknown. He has not been held criminally liable for stalking; previously he was only convicted for petty hooliganism.
How to Achieve Punishment
Lawyer Maria Zyryanova explained that although there is no separate law on stalking in Russia, many of the stalker«s actions fall under existing articles.
Threats of murder or infliction of serious harm (Article 119 of the Criminal Code) must be thoroughly documented: take screenshots with full context, audio or video recordings. Interpreting implicit threats may require a linguistic expert«s conclusion.
Use of pepper spray may be qualified as infliction of harm to health (Articles 111, 112, 115 of the Criminal Code or Article 6.1.1 of the Administrative Code). It is necessary to document the consequences through emergency medical services, a trauma center, and an ophthalmologist.
Nighttime knocking on the door is a violation of public order (Article 20.1 of the Administrative Code). When calling the police, it is important that law enforcement officers catch the violators and take explanations. A video recording of the incident will be key evidence. Zyryanova recommends recording a video message describing what is happening and sending it to a trusted person.
Distribution of intimate photographs falls under Article 137 of the Criminal Code (Violation of privacy). It is necessary to save screenshots with publication data and have a notarial examination of the pages.
Publication of defamatory information (for example, accusations of pedophilia) is regulated by the Civil Code. One can demand removal and compensation for moral harm. The disseminator must prove the falsity of the information.
Paper flyers are harder to prove, but one can request recordings from the «Safe City» camera system through a lawyer.
Calls and messages to acquaintances with defamation are also grounds for a lawsuit. The ownership of the number and voice is proven through witnesses and expertise.
Sending «dick pics» to adults is problematic from a legal point of view, unlike cases with minors.
Statements in support of Ukraine can become grounds for cases of justification of terrorism and extremism.
Exemption from liability is possible only by decision of a forensic psychiatric examination, if insanity at the time of the actions is established.
What an Anti-Stalking Law Could Provide
State Duma deputy Sardana Avksentyeva spoke about the bill she introduced together with a colleague. According to her, currently stalking in Russia is «effectively permitted by default,» and the law is needed for protection before a more serious crime occurs.
According to a summer 2025 survey, every fifth resident of Russia (18%) has been the object of obsessive stalking. Among youth aged 18 to 29, the figure is 28%.
Previous initiatives were rejected. The new draft includes a definition of obsessive stalking, which covers surveillance, systematic attempts at contact, and use of the victim«s personal data.
The key innovation is a protection order, which the court can issue for up to six months. It prohibits the stalker from approaching the victim, writing to her, and visiting her daily places. Violation of the order will entail administrative, and in repeated cases, criminal liability.
Amendments to the Administrative Code establish punishments: for obsessive stalking — a fine of 5,000 to 10,000 rubles (approx. $55–$110 at current rates) or arrest for up to seven days; for stalking a child via the internet — arrest for up to 15 days or compulsory labor; for violation of a protection order — a fine of 10,000 to 20,000 rubles (approx. $110–$220 at current rates) or arrest for up to ten days.
The law also provides for the right to compensation for moral and material harm. If the document is adopted, it will come into force on January 1, 2027.
*The LGBT movement has been recognized as an extremist organization and is banned in Russia.
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