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Russian pranksters claim Putin hoax call to Elton John

Sir Elton John speaking during the 12th Annual Meeting entitled “At Risk: How New Ukraine’s Fate Affects Europe and the World” organized by the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation at the Mystetsky Arsenal Art Center in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015. Sir Elton John delivered a keynote speech about the role of business in promoting human rights. More than 200 leaders from politics, business and society representing more than 20 countries will discuss major global challenges and their impact on Europe, Ukraine and the world. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
Sir Elton John speaking during the 12th Annual Meeting entitled “At Risk: How New Ukraine’s Fate Affects Europe and the World” organized by the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation at the Mystetsky Arsenal Art Center in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015. Sir Elton John delivered a keynote speech about the role of business in promoting human rights. More than 200 leaders from politics, business and society representing more than 20 countries will discuss major global challenges and their impact on Europe, Ukraine and the world. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky) Sir Elton John speaking during the 12th Annual Meeting entitled “At Risk: How New Ukraine’s Fate Affects Europe and the World” organized by the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation at the Mystetsky Arsenal Art Center in Kiev, Ukraine, Saturday, Sept. 12, 2015. Sir Elton John delivered a keynote speech about the role of business in promoting human rights. More than 200 leaders from politics, business and society representing more than 20 countries will discuss major global challenges and their impact on Europe, Ukraine and the world. (AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)

By Associated Press 1 min read

MOSCOW (AP) – Two Russian pranksters say they fooled Elton John into believing that Russian President Vladimir Putin had given him a call.

The British star on Tuesday posted a message on Instagram, thanking Putin for calling him to discuss gay rights in Russia and inviting him for a meeting in Moscow. Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov denied the reports, saying that Putin never called John.

Vladimir “Vovan” Krasnov and Alexei “Lexus” Stolyarov told Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda on Wednesday that they had fooled Elton John by calling him on Tuesday and pretending they were Peskov and Putin. The two men, known for prank-calling Russian and Ukrainian celebrities for television shows, said the audio of the call would be broadcast on a prime-time show later Wednesday.