Two Jehovah's Witnesses were arrested in Primorye as part of a new criminal case

On March 17, 2019, Jehovah's Witnesses were searched in Luchegorsk, Primorsky Krai. Two believers were detained and then sent under arrest.

On March 17, 2019, searches were carried out in the homes of Jehovah's Witnesses in Luchegorsk, Primorsky Krai. Two believers, Yuri Belosludtsev and 63-year-old Sergei Sergeev, were detained. On March 19, the court took them into custody for two months.

It is reported that the operation in Luchegorsk was carried out with the participation of FSB officers who arrived from Dalnerechensk (presumably, employees of the service in the city of Dalnerechensk of the frontier department of the FSB of Russia in Primorsky Krai). It was to this city that the detainees were taken after the searches.

On March 25, the Investigative Committee of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Primorsky Territory reported that a criminal case had been opened in Dalnerechensk against a resident of the region under CC. 1, 2 art. 282.2 of the Criminal Code (organization of the activities of an extremist organization and participation in it). According to investigators, a group of Jehovah's Witnesses has continued the activities of the banned organization since April 25, 2018. The ICR reported that during the investigation, " two leaders of the banned organization " were identified, who " recruited new members, performed actions aimed at clarifying the norms, foundations, rules, prohibitions and restrictions, in order to promote the banned organization and were directly involved in meetings ". They were charged with organizing the activities of an extremist organization (Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code). The crime was revealed by the border department of the FSB of Russia in the Primorsky Territory, the Investigative Committee confirmed.

This is the fifth case initiated in Primorsky Krai against Jehovah's Witnesses: two cases are being investigated in Vladivostok, one in the Nadezhdinsky District, and one in Spassk-Dalny.

The decision to recognize the Administrative Center of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia and 395 local organizations as extremist was made by the Supreme Court of Russia in April 2017. was rejected In July , an appeal against this decision , after which, in August, the organizations were included in the list of extremist ones. We believe that this decision, like the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in general, had no legal basis and was a clear manifestation of religious discrimination.

On September 24 and 26, the Primorsky Regional Court considered the complaints of Sergeyev and Belosludtsev and replaced both of them with house arrest. Later it also became known that they were charged under Part 1.1 of Art. 282.2 of the Criminal Code (recruitment to an extremist organization).

Sources

• Near the Chinese border searches and detentions of Jehovah's Witnesses. Message from Jehovah's Witnesses. 2019. March 19.
• In Primorsky Krai, the court sent 2 believers to jail. Message from Jehovah's Witnesses. March 22, 2019
• In Dalnerechensk, a criminal case was opened on the fact of organizing the activities of an extremist organization // SU TFR of Russia for the Primorsky Territory. March 25, 2019
• In Primorye, Sergei Sergeev and Yuri Belosludtsev were transferred from the pre-trial detention center to house arrest. Message from Jehovah's Witnesses. 2019. October 7th.
• Court in Primorye releases two followers of Jehovah's Witnesses from pre-trial detention center // Interfax - Russia. 2019. October 8.