A new wave of searches of Jehovah's Witnesses took place in Birobidzhan. Among them are the Postnikovs, who are serving a suspended sentence for their faith

Not less than ten people were searched as part of a raid on the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses in Birobidzhan and the village of Amurzet on February 6, 2024. At least two criminal cases have been initiated; one is being investigated by the investigative committee, the other by the FSB.

One of the believers, Anatoly Artamonov, is suspected of involving a local resident in the activities of a liquidated legal entity of Jehovah's Witnesses (Part 1.1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). From the search warrant it turned out that resident in question is a young man from the village of Amurzet, located 200 km from Birobidzhan.

The security forces also came to his family with a search. He had previously applied for alternative civilian service. Although the young man explained this by his personal beliefs based on the Bible, in response the military commissar indicated that "the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation recognized the organization of Jehovah's Witnesses as extremist and banned its activities in Russia in 2017."

Some of those searched in Birobidzhan were talking about the Bible with a local woman and her adult daughter. As it became known, they worked for security forces and secretly recorded conversations with believers.

Searches within the framework of the case being investigated by the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Khabarovsk Territory and the Jewish Autonomous Region were authorized by the Birobidzhan District Court. Law enforcement officers seized electronic devices, data disks, personal records and Bibles in different translations.

The search of the Postnikov family in Birobidzhan took about five hours, at which time a 72-year-old acquaintance came to visit them. The security forces seized her phone. Oleg, who is serving a suspended sentence for his faith, was threatened with tougher punishment, he was told to "prepare a bag." On February 9, an FSB investigator summoned the spouses for questioning.

In the Jewish Autonomous Region, 23 Jehovah's Witnesses have already been sentenced to various terms for their Christian beliefs.