Updated: March 28, 2024
Name: Mikhaylov Dmitriy Vasilyevich
Date of Birth: October 25, 1977
Current status: convicted person
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (2), 282.3 (1), 282.2 (1)
Time spent in prison: 5 day in a temporary detention facility, 165 day in a pre-trial detention
Sentence: A fine of 560,000 rubles

Biography

Dmitry Mikhailov was born on October 25, 1977 in the village of Kupchanovka (Akmola region, Kazakhstan). He lives in Shuya (Ivanovo region, Russia). He grew up in the family of a doctor - his mother was a dermatologist-venereologist. He studied at the Ivanovo State Power Engineering University with a degree in industrial electronics. He worked as a system administrator, repaired computers, and is also fond of photography and video editing.

Dmitry was baptized as one of Jehovah's Witnesses in 1993 at the age of 16, when he discovered the clarity, harmony and consistency of the Bible, the beauty of knowledge about God. In 2003 he got married, his wife Elena teaches mathematics and physics. Since then, the two of them have devoted a lot of time to improving people's lives through biblical education.

In 2018, Dmitriy and Yelena learned that for several months their phones had been tapped and hidden video was being filmed behind them. On May 29, Dmitriy was detained on absurd charges and placed in a temporary detention facility, and then in a pre-trial detention center. His mother, who did not share her son's religious beliefs, exclaimed when she was arrested: "Instead of persecuting honest people, it would be better to catch criminals!"

The Mikhailovs' neighbors submitted to the court a characterization according to which Dmitry "has established himself as a caring husband and son ... Dmitry is responsive, sociable, polite, responsible, without bad habits ... always has a neat appearance and is ready to help ... takes care of her elderly mother, born in 1939, provides her with medicines and care ... Her only son."

Case History

Wiretapping, the introduction of a provocateur, hidden video filming in the homes of believers — this began the persecution of Jehovah’s Witnesses in the city of Shuya in the spring of 2017. A year later, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case under three extremist articles against peaceful believer Dmitry Mikhailov. In April and June 2018, the homes of Jehovah’s Witnesses were searched: believers were treated rudely, pressured, and even a 10-year-old girl was interrogated. After the searches, new defendants appeared in the case: Elena Mikhailova, Svetlana Ryzhkova, Svetlana Shishina and Alexey Arkhipov. Dmitry spent 6 months in a pre-trial detention center. In September 2019, the investigator handed over the case to the prosecutor, but a year later he returned it for further investigation. The criminal case went to court in July 2021, but the judge returned it to the prosecutor for revision. The retrial of the case in the same court began in May 2022.