Putin humiliated as gay porn star scandal erupts over Victory Day celebrations

Vladimir Putin attends Victory Day parade in Moscow (Image: Getty)

A giant mosaic commissioned for Russia's celebrations of the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany inadvertently contained numerous photos of an American gay porn star. Last Friday, Russians gathered in cities and towns across the country to celebrate victory over the Germans in World War 2.

Held on May 9 each year, the day is a major public holiday, as the country comes together to remember the almost 11 million Soviet soldiers who are believed to have died during the war. A local businessman from the town of Zheleznogorsk in Russia's Kursk region decided to commission a huge mosaic for the momentous day.

A photo of William Herrington in the World War 2 mosaic (Image: Telegram)

Parts of the border region had been seized in August last year by Ukrainian forces, leading to a concerted Russian military effort to try and drive them out.

The mosaic was decorated with photos of veterans from World War 2 and the current military campaign in Ukraine, according to reports on Telegram.

However the eagle-eyed social activist Ruslan Tsyganov spotted numerous photos of the American gay porn sensation Billy Herrington in the display.

After publicising the fact on his Telegram channel, local officials hurriedly removed the offending photos from the mosaic.

The mosaic was the brainchild of local businessman Anton Polsky, who pleaded innocence for the embarrassing mistake and offence caused.

Under Putin, the Kremlin has initiated an extensive crackdown on the LGBT community, introducing several laws banning so-called "gay propaganda".

Any promotion of homosexuality - including in books, films and online - is illegal and carries heavy penalties.

Polsky claimed that he received the photo of the "veteran porn" star from a 16-year-old schoolboy and didn't bother to check it.

The teenager has been questioned by local police and will be "worked on in terms of patriotic education".

William Herrington was an American model and pornographic film actor who appeared in 17 adult films during his decade-long career.

Several photos of Herrington were displayed in the mosaic (Image: Telegram)

He was named Colt Man of the Year in 2000, and in 2002 he won an Adult Erotic Gay Video Award.

The actor tragically died aged 48 in a car accident in March 2018. His fame led him to become a popular Internet meme on video-sharing websites such as Japan's Nico Nico Douga.