Name: Zhukov Andrey Aleksandrovich
Date of Birth: August 13, 1972
Current status: defendant
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (1), 282.2 (1.1)
Time spent in prison: 1 day in a temporary detention facility
Current restrictions: recognizance agreement

Biography

Andrey Zhukov, a resident of Yugorsk, is an aircraft engineer by education, who in recent years has taken care of the cleanliness of courtyards and streets in the territory entrusted to him. In the summer of 2020, the security forces suspected extremism in his peaceful religious activities.

Andrey was born in 1972 in Chelyabinsk. During his school years, he was engaged in sambo and hockey. Andrey was also fascinated by aviation and astronautics. He read many books on the subject and collected aircraft models. For two years he attended an flying club, where he flew a sports plane, jumped with a parachute.

After school, Andrey worked as a repairman at an iron foundry. Later he was drafted into the army, where he served 2 years in the Airborne Forces. He graduated from the Troitsk Aviation Technical College with a degree in mechanical engineering, then the Samara Aerospace University and the Ural Forest Engineering University. Has a specialty "Construction of roads and airfields".

After studying in college, Andrey worked as an aircraft technician on helicopters for 5 years. Later he got a job as a valve hydraulic press at the plant. For 13 years Andrey worked in the field of maintaining cleanliness and order in the yards and on the streets. He also professionally created advertising and presentation texts, but in 2019 he was fired due to staff reduction.

Andrey loves sports: he plays hockey in one of the city teams, rollerblades and bikes, runs, and is fond of strength training. He also enjoys playing chess, reading and spending time with his family.

In the early 2000s, Andrey decided to take the Christian path. He liked the logic, reasonableness, and simplicity of biblical truths, and the fact that everything in the Bible is interconnected.

In 2006 Andrey married Svetlana. The spouses have a son and a daughter, whom they instill high moral standards from childhood. The family loves nature: in winter they build birdhouses and feed birds, and in summer they gather mushrooms. Another family hobby is making wooden model airplanes as gifts for friends.

The persecution of the head of the family affected the health of his then-pregnant wife Svetlana. To the delight of the whole family, in August 2023 Andrey was fully acquitted by the court.

Case History

In August 2020, in the cities of Yugorsk and Sovetskiy, searches were carried out at 9 addresses of Jehovah’s Witnesses, 16 people were taken away for interrogation. The Investigative Committee initiated a criminal case against Andrey Zhukov and Ivan Sorokin for organizing the activity of an extremist organization because of talking about the Bible with their friends. The believers were placed in a temporary detention facility, and the next day they were released under a recognizance agreement. A few months later, their accounts were blocked, which became a serious difficulty for the Zhukov family regarding the birth of their second child. In August 2021, Zhukov and Sorokin were also charged with involving others in the activity of an extremist organization. The case went to court in October of the same year. In August 2023, the court fully acquitted Zhukov and Sorokin. After 3 months, the court of appeal overturned the verdict. In February 2024, the case went to court for a new trial.
Back to top