Two high-ranking Scientologists were arrested in St. Petersburg in the case of an extremist community

The Nevsky District Court of St. Petersburg, until August 5, arrested the executive director Galina Shurina and the head of the Church of Scientology Ivan Matsitsky, who is accused of participating in an extremist community (Article 282.1 of the Criminal Code). this RAPSI reports with reference to its correspondent in the courtroom.

They are also accused of illegal business (Article 171 of the Criminal Code) and inciting hatred and enmity (Article 282 of the Criminal Code).

According to the investigator, some adherents of the Church of Scientology Shurin and Matsitsky were called “sources of trouble”; “ethical orders” were issued against them, which prohibited offending followers from participating in one of the basic practices - auditing. During the search, literature deemed extremist was confiscated from Shurinova.

According to investigators, Shurinova is the chief administrator of the church and controls the community’s money, and Matsitsky is the “spiritual leader.” churches. From 2013 to 2016, the Church of Scientology in St. Petersburg received more than 276 million rubles for the sale of educational programs “Dianetics: The Evolution of Science” and “Mini-Hat”. The funds were transferred to controlled bank accounts, while the church was not registered as a legal entity.

According to Shurinova’s lawyer, the investigation added articles on extremism and humiliation of human dignity in order to arrest the accused.

On June 7, the court arrested until August 5 the head of official affairs of the Church of Scientology, Anastasia Terentyeva. In addition, Nadezhda Shchemeleva and Sahib Aliyev were taken into custody.

The criminal prosecution of St. Petersburg Scientologists began in April 2016. On June 6, the FSB conducted a search at the central office of the Church of Scientology on Babushkina Street in St. Petersburg.