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Actions of Law Enforcement Officers

Searches and Detentions of Jehovah's Witnesses Near the Chinese Border

Primorye Territory

On March 17, 2019, in the village of Luchegorsk (Primorye Territory), searches were carried out in the homes of citizens whom law enforcement officers consider to be Jehovah's Witnesses. The operation was carried out by FSB officers from Dalnerechensk, which is 80 kilometers away. In some places, searches and interrogations lasted for 7 hours. Two believers, Yuriy Belosludtsev and 63-year-old Sergey Sergeyev, were detained and taken to Dalnerechensk.

It is not yet known whether a criminal case has been opened and what is the fate of the detainees.

This operation took place against the backdrop of a lawsuit in Luchegorsk: the prosecutor's office is seeking to turn into state ownership the building in which Luchegorsk's Jehovah's Witnesses used to hold their services. The building was sold, the prosecutor's office is trying to invalidate the transaction.

Earlier in Primorye Krai, four (!) criminal cases had already been initiated against Jehovah's Witnesses for their faith: in Vladivostok (2), Spassk-Dalny and the village of Volno-Nadezhdinsky. Six people were sent to jail, five of them were placed under house arrest. Five more are under recognizance not to leave. 44-year-old Dmitry Barmakin has been in pre-trial detention center No. 1 in Primorsky Krai for 235 days.

Law enforcers mistakenly mistake citizens' religion for participation in the activities of an extremist organization. Prominent public figures of Russia, the Human Rights Council under the President of the Russian Federation, the President of the Russian Federation, as well as international organizations - the European Union External Action Service, observers of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights - drew attention to this problem. Jehovah's Witnesses have nothing to do with extremism and insist on their complete innocence. The Russian government has repeatedly stated that the decisions of the Russian courts on the liquidation and prohibition of organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses "do not assess the doctrine of Jehovah's Witnesses, do not contain a restriction or prohibition to practice the above teachings individually."

Case of Sergeyev and Belosludtsev in Luchegorsk

Case History
In March 2019, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case for their faith against Yuriy Belosludtsev and Sergey Sergeyev from the village of Luchegorsk. They were accused of participating in the activities of an extremist organization and involving others in it. The investigation considered that the men were in a “criminal conspiracy” to “study and discuss religious material on topics about Jehovah.” Later, operatives searched their homes. The believers spent more than six months in a pre-trial detention center, and then another 5 months under house arrest. In June 2020, court hearings began, and a year and a half later, Belosludtsev and Sergeyev were sentenced to 6 years probation. The prosecutor asked for a sentence of 5.5 and 5 years in prison, respectively. The Court of Appeal and the Court of Cassation upheld the conviction.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Primorye Territory
Locality:
Luchegorsk
Suspected of:
according to the investigation, together with others he conducted religious services, which is interpreted as organising and participating in the activity of an extremist organisation (with reference to the decision of the Russian Supreme Court on the liquidation of all 396 registered organisations of Jehovah’s Witnesses)
Court case number:
11902050012000024
Initiated:
March 11, 2019
Current case stage:
The verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigative Committee of Russia for the Primorye Territory
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1.1), 282.2 (2)
Court case number:
1-4/2022 (1-17/2021; 1-145/2020)
Court:
Пожарский районный суд Приморского края
Judge:
Евгений Стефанюк
Case History