The First Sentence for Faith in the Samara Region. Sona Olopova, 36, From Tolyatti Was Sentenced to 2 Years of Forced Labor

On January 25, 2024, Tatyana Begunova, judge of the Central District Court of Tolyatti, found Sona Olopova guilty of extremism because of her religion and sentenced her to 2 years of forced labor. She will serve her sentence in a correctional facility. The believer considers the verdict unfair.

"The evidence presented by the prosecution does not confirm my guilt in committing a crime. All arguments boil down to the fact that . . . in the city of Tolyatti, a small group of people practicing the religion of Jehovah's Witnesses held meetings for worship, which began with song and prayer and were aimed at discussing the Bible," Sona said in court.

The state prosecutor requested 4 years in a penal colony and 8 months of restriction of freedom for the believer. However, according to the believer, the prosecutor could not explain what specific crimes were committed and where and how Olopova committed them.

Sona faced criminal prosecution in May 2023, when an investigator of the Investigative Committee initiated a criminal case against her for participating in the activity of an extremist organization. The security forces searched her home, interrogated her and released her under a recognizance agreement.

The believer spoke about the support she received from friends: "When I left the building of the Investigative Committee, I saw how my friends came to meet me and hug me. Many were very worried about me and were crying. So much love, attention and gifts, cards, various messages assuring me of their love and our Father's."

During the trial, it became clear that the prosecution had no evidence of the believer's guilt. According to Olopova's lawyer, one of the expert studies presented by the prosecution was prepared as part of another criminal case, and conclusions were made in relation to third parties, so this material should not have been attached to her case. Witnesses for the prosecution questioned at the hearing, including one secret witness, confirmed that there were no calls for violence or religious hatred at the meetings of Jehovah's Witnesses, and that the meetings were always peaceful.

Currently, in the Samara Region, in addition to Sona Olopova, 9 more Jehovah's Witnesses are defending their constitutional right to freedom of religion in the courts.