In Oryol, three Jehovah's Witnesses had their arrest extended

On February 3, the Sovetsky District Court of Orel extended the arrest of three Jehovah's Witnesses - Vladimir Melnik, Vladimir Piskarev and Artur Putintsev - until March 8, 2021. This was reported on the website of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia.

54-year-old Vladimir Melnik, along with Jehovah's Witnesses Vladimir Piskarev and Artur Putintsev, was detained in December 2020 after mass searches of community members in Oryol. On December 14, the Sovetsky District Court sent all three to pre-trial detention center No. 1 in the Oryol region for 2 months. Jehovah's Witnesses are accused of participating in the activities of an extremist organization (Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code).

On February 3, the investigator requested an extension of the arrest of all three for another month, until March 8. In her opinion, the accused will interfere with the investigation by putting pressure on witnesses and hiding evidence.

Speaking in court, Vladimir Melnik noted that the activities of the local organization of Jehovah's Witnesses have not been carried out in Orel since 2016, and therefore he does not understand the accusations against him.

64-year-old Vladimir Piskarev had severe attacks of hypertension while in jail, noted a statement from Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia. The administration initially did not provide him with the necessary medications, and the defense insists that he needs qualified medical care.

The press service of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia reports that the arrest was extended for all three, and their defense plans to appeal.

• In February 2019, the Oryol District Court sentenced Danish citizen Dennis Christensen to six years in a general regime colony on charges of involvement in the Jehovah's Witnesses community. Christensen was found guilty under the article on organizing the activities of an extremist organization (Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code). The defense asked to replace part of the sentence with a fine, but the court refused .
• On April 20, 2017, the Supreme Court recognized the “Administrative Center of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Russia” as an extremist organization, liquidated it and banned its activities in Russia. In August, all Jehovah's Witnesses organizations were added to the list of prohibited organizations. After this, a stream of criminal cases against representatives of the confession began. *