The 100th Jehovah's Witness Has Been Sent Behind Bars in Russia: Dmitriy Dolzhikov, 44, Is in a Novosibirsk Pre-Trial Detention Center

As of September 30, 2022, 95 men and 5 women professing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses are behind bars. Of these, 32 are in the penal colony and 68 in the pre-trial detention centers. Dmitriy Dolzhikov, arrested after a raid on Jehovah's Witnesses in Chelyabinsk, became the 100th prisoner.

On May 13, 2020, A. Bryuzgin, investigator of the Investigative Committee of the RF Investigative Committee for the Novosibirsk Region, opened a case against Dolzhikov. Two years later, the believer was detained in Chelyabinsk, and then placed in pre-trial detention center No. 1 in the Novosibirsk region. The search at Dmitriy's place of residence in Chelyabinsk was authorized by investigator A. Chepenko, who is known for the criminal persecution of believers in the Chelyabinsk region.

Dolzhikov is charged with Part 2 of Art. 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, because he allegedly “intentionally, out of extremist motives, took part in the activities of a religious association . . . in the form of participation in religious meetings and meetings of an extremist organization, conducting conversations . . . demonstrations and watching educational videos.”

While there are simultaneously 100 people in custody, another 249 of Jehovah's Witnesses have been to prisons and pre-trial detention centers, some of whom have spent more than five years behind bars. Information about these people, including their criminal prosecution history, can be found at jw-russia.org under "Prisoners of Conscience" using a filter system. A total of 643 people have been criminally persecuted for believing in Jehovah God.

What is happening to Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia is of concern to the international community. For example, on September 28, 2022, the OSCE held a conference in Poland to discuss religious freedom and protection of human rights. The speakers drew attention to the fact that "Russia's actions against... Jehovah's Witnesses... include raids, arrests, long prison sentences, and probably torture.”