After searches in Penza, four alleged followers of Jehovah's Witnesses were arrested

In Penza, after massive searches, alleged followers of Jehovah's Witnesses were arrested. This was announced on July 20 on the religious association’s Facebook page.

wrote The report states that on July 15, four groups of law enforcement officers led by Major Alexander Bukov searched the apartments of alleged followers of Jehovah's Witnesses.

According to the group, during the investigation, “some police humiliated and intimidated believers.” An example is given that the investigator forced six women to take off all their clothes in order to conduct a personal search.

As a result, equipment, photographs, documents and personal records were confiscated from all apartments. Then about 40 people were interrogated, and criminal cases were opened against four of them under Part 1 and Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code (organization and participation in the activities of an extremist organization).

After this, the court arrested the detained Vladimir Alushkin until September 14, and placed three other alleged followers of Jehovah's Witnesses - Vladimir Kulyasov, Andrei Magliv, Denis Timoshin - under house arrest for the same period. The report does not specify which court made the decision.

• On April 20, 2017, the Supreme Court liquidated the “Administrative Center of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia” extremist organization and banned its activities in Russia. In August, all organizations of Jehovah's Witnesses were added to the list of prohibited ones. In many large cities of Russia, followers of Jehovah's Witnesses are under arrest. admitted introduced - In May in Orenburg and the Orenburg region from alleged members of Jehovah's Witnesses. After this, two local residents were arrested and 18 searches were carried out - In July in Krasnoyarsk Andrei Stupnikov, suspected of organizing the activities of Jehovah's Witnesses. The case file states that the man planned to take part in the international congress of Jehovah's Witnesses in Germany. arrested - In Omsk, the married couple Sergei and Anastasia Polyakov - alleged followers of Jehovah's Witnesses. placed under arrest - According to the SOVA Center, “the liquidation of Jehovah’s Witnesses organizations for extremism, persecution of members of their communities and bans on texts have no legal basis and are a clear manifestation of religious discrimination.” Information and analytical