Biography
In January 2021, security forces came to the home of 42-year-old Mikhail Potapov and his wife to conduct a search. The head of the family was handcuffed, taken away for interrogation, and then placed in a pre-trial detention center. The investigation considered the religious beliefs of a peaceful believer to be a serious crime.
Mikhail was born in April 1978 in the village of Kepa (Karelia). His older sister, disabled since childhood, lives with her mother. His father died in 2006. As a child, Mikhail loved reading, hiking, fishing with his father, listening to music.
After school, Mikhail learned to be a carpenter, worked in this specialty at the local House of Culture and at a machine-building plant. Recently, he worked as a repair technician for refueling and servicing office equipment.
Mikhail was always interested in spiritual matters. He even looked for courses in the study of the Scriptures, but did not find any and began to read the Bible with a friend. Having received answers to his questions, in 2003 he was baptized as one of Jehovah's Witnesses.
In 2011, Mikhail married Tamara, a girl who shares his views on life. She works as a manicure master, loves to knit. The couple enjoys traveling together. They visited many picturesque places in Russia: in Karelia, the Arkhangelsk region, in the Urals.
Despite the fact that Mikhail's family does not share his religious views, they are shocked by the accusations of extremism brought against him. The believer's elderly mother could not hold back her tears after learning about the persecution of her son.