Updated: April 26, 2024
Name: Galitsina Lubov Vladimirovna
Date of Birth: May 9, 1956
Current status: Defendant
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (2)
Time spent in prison: 1 day in a temporary detention facility, 496 day in a pre-trial detention, 123 day Under house arrest
Current restrictions: House arrest

Biography

Pensioner Lyubov Galitsyna ended up in a pre-trial detention center shortly after searches in Novocherkassk in the summer of 2022. Because of her faith in Jehovah God, she was accused of participating in the activities of an extremist organization.

Lyubov was born in May 1956 in the village of Plastunovskaya (Krasnodar Territory). Until graduating from school, she lived in the village of Shedok (Krasnodar Territory). She has a sister and a brother. Since childhood, Lyubov helped her parents take care of a large vegetable garden, which brought the main income to their large family.

After graduating from school, Lyubov moved to Novocherkassk (Rostov region), where she entered the Polytechnic Institute, and then the Machine-Building College. Later she married and had two children. In 2015, her husband died.

Lyubov worked at a machine-building plant. Colleagues appreciated and loved her for her diligence, sincerity and good nature. After retirement, Lyubov continued to work at the Polytechnic Institute as a barmaid. In her spare time, she enjoys embroidery and painting by numbers.

Lyubov showed interest in the Bible because she was moved by the prophecy that in the future people would no longer get sick, grow old, and die. In 1997, she made the decision to embark on the Christian path.

Lyubov devoted a lot of time and attention to her children and grandchildren, so separation from her became a real test for the whole family. Relatives of the believer are worried about her, especially in view of the fact that Lyubov suffers from diabetes. It is difficult for them to understand why this peaceful believer is being persecuted.

Case History

In the early morning of August 2022, the homes of local Jehovah’s Witnesses were searched in Novocherkassk and the village of Grushevskaya. Half an hour before the start of the searches, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against Gevorg Yeritsyan, Garegin Khachaturyan and Lyubov Galitsyna on charges of extremism. The men were interrogated and placed in a pre-trial detention center. A few days later, Lyubov was also behind bars. She spent more than a year in a pre-trial detention center, after which she was released under house arrest. Hearings in the case began in September 2023.