Case of Lukin in Biysk

Case History

In December 2022, the Investigative Committee in Biysk opened a criminal case against unidentified persons. Under this case, searches were carried out in the homes of local Jehovah’s Witnesses in January 2023. The suspect was a respected businessman, native of the city, Sergey Lukin. According to investigators, he took part in the “activities of an extremist organization” — this is how an ordinary meeting of believers to discuss the Bible was interpreted. The reason for the criminal prosecution was a statement from a man who was allegedly interested in the Bible. After the interrogation, Lukin was released on recognizance agreement. In January 2024, the court began hearing the case on the merits.
Timeline

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    December 1, 2022 Case initiated

    The Investigative Department for the city of Biysk of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee for the Altai Territory is initiating a criminal case against unidentified persons.

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    January 25, 2023 Search Interrogation Recognizance agreement

    Early in the morning, searches are carried out in the homes of four Jehovah's Witnesses in Biysk: two women and two men. At the home of a 60-year-old believer, security forces are searching several rooms at once, scattering things on the floor. Then she was interrogated in the FSB building, threatening to open a case under an extremist article, and then taken to the local department of the Investigative Committee.

    After a search in the apartment of 51-year-old Sergey Lukin, he was taken to the investigative committee for questioning. Senior investigator I. V. Lobada chooses Lukin a measure of restraint in the form of a written undertaking not to leave and proper behavior. Then the believer is taken to his place of work, where his office is searched in the presence of FSB officers.

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    October 27, 2023 Art. 282.2 (2)

    Investigator Lobada involves Sergey Lukin as an accused. The ruling states that the believers, while holding meetings in the apartment, "observed strict measures of secrecy of the congregation ... where they studied the religious teachings of Jehovah's Witnesses, gave comments and expressed their views on the issues discussed."

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    January 25, 2024 Hearing in a court of the first instance

    The indictment shall be announced at the hearing. Sergey Lukin reads out his attitude to the criminal case: as a believer, he exercised his constitutional right to jointly profess religion and hold worship services. The defendant emphasizes that there are no signs of extremism, propaganda of superiority or exclusivity in his actions.

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    15 February — 2 May 2024 Hearing in a court of the first instance

    The prosecution reads out the case materials from volumes 1 to 8. The prosecutor also reads out the data of the ORM, which contains information about the worship service where believers study the Bible.

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    June 13, 2024 Hearing in a court of the first instance Interrogation

    The interrogation of prosecution witnesses lasts about 2.5 hours. One of them, Alexeev, says he met with Sergei Lukin at his home to discuss the Bible. He did not hear any coercion from the defendant to change his faith.

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    July 4, 2024 Hearing in a court of the first instance Interrogation

    Witnesses for the prosecution are being interrogated - FSB officers who conducted operational-search activities - Vatslavsky and Cherednichenko. As it turned out, they did not save the original audio and video recordings of the OPM.

    According to Vaclavsky, a sign of extremism in the actions of Jehovah's Witnesses is the assertion that there is only one true religion.