Patriarch Kirill of Moscow in 1997. In his 2002 interview with "Izvestia", Metropolitan Kirill called the allegations about his profiteering a political campaign against him. Alexander Pochinok who was the minister of taxes and levies (1999-2000), said in 2009 that Kirill had no involvement in the violations. Three female members of the feminist group Pussy Riot were arrested in March 2012 for performing a song in the Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow during which they called on the Virgin Mary to "chase Putin out". The women were arrested for hooliganism and were later sentenced to two years' imprisonment. The song contained swear words
Pets of Vladimir Putin Pets of Vladimir Putin Vladimir Putin, current president of Russia, owns three dogs, who live at his residence in Moscow. He is actively involved in the conservation of many endangered Russian dog breeds. Verni was a birthday gift from Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, President of Turkmenistan, during a meeting in Sochi. The puppy is an Alabai, a top Turkmen-bred variety of the Central Asia shepherd dog. 'Verni', means 'Faithful' or 'Loyal' in Russian. Yume, a 3-month old Akita puppy, arrived in Moscow from Tokyo, Japan in July 2012, as the Akita Prefecture’s gift to show gratitude for assistance from Russia after the