"Fig leaves." Drivers who covered their license plates were fined en masse in Yekaterinburg.

      Pieces of paper and anything else that prevented recording the license plate numbers were removed from the cars of unscrupulous motorists in Yekaterinburg who had been covering their registration plates. The city administration reported this on Friday on its unofficial Telegram channel "Yekaterinburg. Main."

      The specific street where the check took place was not specified. It was only reported that cars with covered state plates were recorded by a "parkon" (a mobile system mounted on a patrol car for automatic monitoring of traffic rule compliance, primarily violations of stopping and parking — note by Uralweb) and that parking for more than 15 minutes without payment was registered, the mayor's office explained.

      "The fine for unpaid parking is 3,000 rubles. The cost of parking per hour is 50 rubles," they noted.

      "How shameful it is, to stick paper over plates to save 50 rubles/hour…" one subscriber commented. "And the cars are quite respectable… that refuel for like 15–20 thousand a month."

      City residents in other Telegram communities agreed with the opinion that hiding numbers is often done by fairly wealthy people. For some it is a kind of pastime akin to a guilty pleasure (from English "guilty pleasure"), they believe.

      "It's sometimes funny to watch cars worth 5–10 million rubles with their plates covered."

      "I know one guy from the Chelyabinsk region: two helicopters, a plane, an impressive fleet of cars, security, and he hides his plates."

      "They have competitions [to see] who can save the most, and the winner got [expensive alcohol]. We worked with that organization; they count every kopeck (like they straighten old nails)."

      "Rightly so, otherwise you come to the city center and there's nowhere to park; cars worth 10 million are parked and all the plates are covered."

      "Of course, chase those bums away from scarce parking spots. Isn't it nicer to come on business, pay 50 rubles and park properly by the entrance, do your business in half an hour, than to try to get onto the grass or the sidewalk in two rows?"