Updated: May 17, 2024
Name: Vorontsov Aleksandr Aleksandrovich
Date of Birth: December 17, 1984
Current status: defendant
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (1)
Current restrictions: recognizance agreement

Biography

All his life Alexandr Vorontsov lived in Pechora (Komi Republic), where he was born in December 1984. By that time the family already had its eldest daughter Catherine, and a few more years later, Alexander had a younger sister, Lyubov, who was named after his mother.

Alexandr recalls with warmth how as a child he closely communicated with children from faithful families: there were tea drinks, holidays and biblical quizzes. Later, when he was already in his 20s, he felt the love of the Christian brotherhood even more when he attended a large worship meeting. The biblical knowledge he had received, as well as the example of a believing mother, had good result and in 2012 Alexandr decided to devote his life to serving God.

Alexandr is a third class carpenter. He also completed courses in accounting and computer skills. Lately he has been working in the field of keeping clean and order, but he is very interested in computers.

In 2016, Alexandr married Yelena, a lawyer by education. The spouses love to travel, ride bikes and ski.

Because of criminal prosecution and religious discrimination, Alexandr and Yelena live in an atmosphere of discomfort and anxiety because of the unknown. Sleep disappears at times. In spite of everything, they are determined to remain faithful to God. His relatives, especially Alexandr's parents and sisters, are very worried about him.

Case History

In January 2020, security forces searched 12 houses in Pechora. Several people were detained. Among them are Gennadiy Polyakevich and Gennadiy Skutelets. On the same day, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation opened a criminal case on extremism against Polyakevich and Skutelets. The court sent Polyakevich to a pre-trial detention center, where he spent 301 days, and placed Skutelets under house arrest for 364 days. In November 2020, another investigator of the Investigative Committee opened a new criminal case against Nikolay Anufriyev, Eduard Merinkov, Viktor Shchannikov, Aleksandr Vorontsov, and Aleksandr Prilepskiy. They were put on recognizance not to leave. The case went to court in May 2021, and eight months later it was returned to the prosecutor. In December 2022, at the age of 58, Aleksandr Prilepskiy died from the effects of COVID-19. In April 2023, the case went to court again.