Biography
Artem and Alevtina Bagratyan ended up behind bars after mass searches at Jehovah's Witnesses in Kursk. Both were imprisoned for a long time. The court handed down guilty verdicts to peaceful spouses only because of their faith.
Artem was born in 1972 in the city of Abovyan (Armenia). He has a brother and sister. By occupation, Artem is a gas boiler operator, he also repairs household appliances and shoes.
After moving from Armenia, Artem lived for some time in Stary Oskol, then in Kursk, Dyatkovo (Bryansk region) and Tomsk. In Kursk, Artem met his future wife Alevtina, and in 2012 they got married. After the wedding, the couple lived in Dyatkovo, but after a while they returned to Kursk to take care of Alevtina's mother.
Artem is fond of cars, loves to be in nature with family and friends, fry shish kebabs, pick mushrooms and berries.
Criminal prosecution and imprisonment seriously affected the health of Artem, who suffers from diabetes and a number of other diseases.
Case History
In October 2019, the FSB initiated a criminal case against Andrey Andreyev, Artem Bagratyan and his wife Alevtina. Andreyev was accused of organizing the activity of an extremist organization, while the others were accused of participating in it. They were placed in a detention center. Later, another believer, Andrey Ryshkov, was arrested. At the end of 2020, Alevtina Bagratyan was transferred to house arrest. Artem Bagratyan suffers from diabetes and other chronic diseases; his condition required inpatient treatment, which he was denied by the management of the detention center. In June 2021, the court sentenced: Andrey Andreyev to 4.5 years in a penal colony, Andrey Ryshkov - 3 years in a penal colony, Artem Bagratyan - 2.5 years in a penal colony and his wife, Alevtina - 2 years in a penal colony. Aleksandr Vospitanyuk was given a 2-year suspended sentence. In January 2022, the court of appeal, and a year later, the court of cassation, upheld this decision. All of the believers have already served their terms.
