Aleksey Shcherbich and his wife Natalya
Aleksey Shcherbich and his wife Natalya
In Neftekumsk, Court Fined One of Jehovah's Witnesses 300,000 Rubles. He Was Released
Stavropol TerritoryOn May 27, 2025, the Neftekumskiy District Court of the Stavropol Territory sentenced 52-year-old Aleksey Shcherbich to a fine of 300 thousand rubles for holding peaceful religious meetings.
Aleksey has been persecuted for his faith for almost 7 years, since 2018. He was arrested not immediately, but 5.5 years after the start of the criminal prosecution. Almost a year, until the verdict was announced, he spent behind bars, having been to several pre-trial detention centers. In one of them, Aleksey was put in a basement cell. "The conditions there are very oppressive. It was hard," the believer said, and added what helped him cheer up: "Before going to bed, I prayed fervently and a few minutes later I heard the whisper of one of my cellmates. He called me by name, said that he knew Jehovah's Witnesses well and had previously been in close contact with us." Aleksey's Christian behavior impressed the other prisoners of this pre-trial detention center so much that they saw him off with tears, wishing for a speedy release.
As Nataliya, Aleksey's wife, said, the separation was the most difficult for them. "We are very attached to each other. For more than 30 years of living together, we have never parted for so long," Nataliya said.
Aleksey's wife expressed gratitude for the fact that friends, acquaintances and just caring people actively supported their family. "I live in a village several hundred kilometers from the pre-trial detention center. Public transport is often canceled here. But thanks to the responsiveness of those who have a car, it was possible to go to the pre-trial detention center to give food or things for Lyosha (editor's note: Lyosha is a diminutive form of Aleksey). Sometimes friends collected parcels themselves: they looked for quality products, stood in line at the pre-trial detention center, filled out the forms necessary for the transfer, and, of course, fervently prayed for Lyosha, and also wrote him letters of support," Nataliya said.
During the criminal prosecution of her husband, Nataliya's health noticeably weakened. But caring for others helped to fight despondency, she said: "I don't allow myself to focus on my problems, so I often call others, send voice messages, pray for them and with them. And when I have time and energy, I try to visit someone in person."
Aleksey and Nataliya have been Jehovah's Witnesses since the early 2000s. For about 20 years, the state had no complaints about their beliefs, which have not changed since then. However, the prosecution demanded that the court send Aleksey to a colony for 8 years.
Jehovah's Witnesses from Neftekumsk were first prosecuted back in 2017, just a month after the decision to liquidate legal entities of this confession came into force. Then the law enforcement officers raided the believers during a picnic. Soon the FSB initiated a criminal case, as a result of which three believers were sentenced to large fines.
