Invasion of believers in Kostroma (July 2018). Photo source: "TV Center"
Invasion of believers in Kostroma (July 2018). Photo source: "TV Center"
On July 26, 2018, 22-year-old Sergey Rayman was sent to jail in Kostroma. His wife Valeria was chosen as a measure of restraint in the form of a ban on certain actions. The couple are accused of practicing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses.
On July 25, 2018, friends found their apartment empty with signs of a burglary on the door. It became known that Sergey and Valeria were sent to a temporary detention center. On the same day, armed riot police raided the homes of at least two other families suspected of practicing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses. All computers and tablets, a printer and a Bible were seized from citizens. The search, among others, involved law enforcement officers Kuropatkin and Malinin. Law enforcement officers accompanied their actions with caustic comments regarding religion. The case is being investigated by investigator S. Korchashov, from the Central District Department of Kostroma of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation.
On July 26, 2018, the Sverdlovsk District Court chose a measure of restraint for Sergey Rayman in the form of 2-month detention. The next day, the court chose a preventive measure for Valeria - in the form of a ban on leaving the house at night, a ban on the Internet, telephone and mail, as well as on communication with "persons professing the teachings of Jehovah." The girl was prosecuted under Part 1 and Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (organization of an extremist organization and participation in the activities of an extremist community) only on the grounds that, according to the investigation, citizens gathered in her house twice to discuss the doctrine of Jehovah's Witnesses.
