In Primorye, One of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 63, Is Given Suspended Sentence

On May 22, 2026, Judge Marina Sinitsyna of the Nadezhdinskiy District Court gave Viktor Chernov a 3-year suspended sentence for practicing his religion among his friends. "All I want is to be allowed to live peacefully with my family in my beloved Primorye Territory, to work and bring joy and benefit to others," he told the court.

Viktor, 63, has worked in landscape design for the past 25 years and has taken part in various programs to make the city of Vladivostok green. He suffers from serious health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, and coronary heart disease.

During the court hearings, Viktor suffered a heart attack and subsequently underwent heart surgery. The court proceedings resumed in April 2026 — Viktor was notified by phone just 20 minutes before the hearing. A month later, the prosecutor requested 4 years of imprisonment.

Viktor's home was searched twice — in 2020 (as part of a case against another believer) and again in 2022. During that period, Viktor lost his wife, with whom he had been married for 28 years and had raised a son. After the second search, the believer was detained and placed under house arrest. "For 5 months I couldn't leave my home," Viktor recalled. "I lost my job, and all my property was seized. The prosecution has been going on for a long time; my body is under constant stress, and that affects both my physical and emotional health. I have to fight discouragement."

Despite the prosecution lasting several years, Viktor has not given up — just like the other 63 prisoners of conscience in the Primorye Territory; 10 of them are already serving terms in penal colonies; 32 were given suspended sentences, and criminal investigations are being carried out against the rest.