Illustrative photo

Illustrative photo

Illustrative photo

Actions of Law Enforcement Officers

Homes of Believers Searched in Vladivostok. One Beaten, Another Arrested

Primorye Territory

On December 7, 2023, searches were carried out in Vladivostok at addresses of believers, at least five, including the home of an elderly man. A believer, 19, was detained and placed in a pretrial detention center for 2 months, while another man was beaten by security forces.

Demanding he gives the password from his phone, the man was hit several times with a rubber truncheon. Later, he went to ER, where he was diagnosed with bruising on his internal organs. He reqires treatment.

During interrogation by the Investigative Committee, the believers were asked questions about their religious beliefs, as well as about their participation in meetings for worship of Jehovah's Witnesses. Also demands were made to incriminate fellow believers.

The searches and interrogations took place as part of the criminal case of Yuriy Byche and others in Vladivostok.

Apart from the victims of the December 7 search, another 26 Jehovah's Witnesses are being prosecuted in Vladivostok for their faith; six of whom have already been convicted.

The Case of Byche and Others in Vladivostok

Case History
After a series of searches in Vladivostok in March 2023, three Jehovah’s Witnesses were detained and placed in a temporary detention facility. Two days later, Yegor Pogrebnyak was released under house arrest, and Yuriy Byche and Sergey Novoselov were sent to a pre-trial detention center. A criminal case was initiated against the believers under an article for extremism. Later that month, Tatyana Kazakova, Marina Roslova, Alina Tkachenko, Anastasiya Dyldina and Yelena Romanova became defendants in the case. And in December, after new searches, Kirill Chekolaev was arrested and placed in a pretrial detention center. He spent about 5 months in detention, and Novoselov and Byche almost a year. All three were released under a ban on certain actions.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Primorye Territory
Locality:
Vladivostok
Court case number:
12302050030000008
Initiated:
February 26, 2023
Current case stage:
preliminary investigation
Investigating:
Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Primorsky Territory
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1), 282.2 (2)
Case History