Human Rights

Announcement of the press conference "Torture of Jehovah's Witnesses in Surgut. New facts of persecution. Expert opinion"

Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area

On March 28, 2019, a press conference will be held in Moscow highlighting the authorities' response to the complaint of 7 Surgut Jehovah's Witnesses who reported torture during interrogations on February 15, 2019.

The press conference will be attended by well-known human rights defenders, lawyers and a representative of the European Association of Jehovah's Witnesses.

The event will be held at the Press Center of the Rosbalt News Agency at the address: Moscow, Skatertny per., 4/2, p. 1. The press center organizes a live video broadcast of the conference. It starts on March 28, 2019 at 12:00 p.m.

Case of Loginov and Others in Surgut

Case History
In February 2019, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against 18 men and 1 woman from Surgut (among them was a man mistaken for a Jehovah’s Witness). Their homes were searched. During the interrogations, 7 believers were subjected to violence. Artur Severinchik was sent to a pre-trial detention center for 29 days, and Yevgeny Fedin and Sergey Loginov - for 56. Timofey Zhukov was illegally placed in a psychiatric hospital for 14 days. Believers complained about the use of torture to the Investigative Committee, the ECHR and the Commissioner for Human Rights, a press conference was held with the participation of human rights defenders, but none of the security forces was ever brought to justice. In October 2021, the case materials were submitted to the court. The prosecutor requested imprisonment for the defendants for a term of 3 years and 3 months to 8.5 years in prison, and for Loginov - 9.5 years, which was the most severe request for punishment for believing in Jehovah God in modern Russia.
Timeline

Persons in case

Kim
Artem
Boronos
Vyacheslav
Burenesku
Vasily
Fedin
Evgeny
Fefilov
Victor
Gargalyk
Saveliy
Petrov
Igor
Kayryak
Evgeny
Kobotov
Igor
Logins
Sergey
Plekhov
Aleksey
Romashov
Paul
Rysikov
Leonid
Severinchik
Arthur
Shepel
Viola
Trifonov
Igor
Volosnikov
Sergey
Zhukov
Timofey

Criminal case

Region:
Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Area
Locality:
Surgut
Suspected of:
delivering speeches, engaging in the Witnesses' public preaching activity with local members, meeting with Bible education volunteers and appointed congregation assistants, and having as one objective the organizing of appointed men in the Vzlyotnove Congregation
Court case number:
42002007709000023
Initiated:
February 11, 2019
Current case stage:
Appeal
Investigating:
Investigative Department of the city of Surgut of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Khanty-Mansi Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1), 282.3 (1), 282.2 (2)
Court case number:
№ 1-27/2023 (1-130/2022; 1-1348/2021)
Court:
Сургутский городской суд
Judge:
Дмитрий Люпин
Case History