Photo: Galiya Olkhova

Photo: Galiya Olkhova

Photo: Galiya Olkhova

Criminal trial

“To Call Extremism What Is Called Love for People in Other Countries.” The Last Word of Galiya Olkhova in the Court of Penza

Penza Region

Galiya Olkhova, a Penza resident, is one of six believers convicted on extremism charges for living as one of Jehovah's Witnesses, that is, reading the Bible and discussing it with others.

The day before the verdict, Galia appeared before the court, speaking about the incompatibility of extremism with her beliefs. She also shared how her faith helped her strengthen her marriage. With minor abbreviations, we publish the last word of Galiya Olkhova at the court hearing on December 12, 2019.

Case of Alushkin and Others in Penza

Case History
In July 2018, searches were carried out in Penza and criminal cases were initiated against 6 local Jehovah’s Witnesses. It turned out that since the fall of 2017, the believers had been under covert surveillance. Vladimir Alushkin spent six months in a pre-trial detention center. The UN Working Group officially recognized his arrest as arbitrary. In the summer of 2019, the case was submitted to the Leninsky District Court of Penza. During the hearings, it turned out that the protocols of the witnesses’ interrogations were partially falsified by the investigation, and one of the witnesses told the court that she had testified under pressure. In December 2019, Judge Roman Tanchenko sentenced Vladimir Alushkin to 6 years in prison, and Tatyana Alushkina, Galia Olkhova, Vladimir Kulyasov, Andrey Magliv and Denis Timoshin to 2 years suspended. In September 2020, the Penza Regional Court commuted the sentence of Vladimir Alushkin, replacing 6 years in prison with 4 years probation. For the rest, the court upheld the sentence - 2 years suspended. On December 9, 2021, the First Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction upheld the verdict.
Timeline

Persons in case

Alushkin
Vladimir
Alushkina
Tatyana
Kulyasov
Vladimir
Magliv
Andrey
Olkhova
Galiya
Timoshin
Denis

Criminal case

Region:
Penza Region
Locality:
Penza
Suspected of:
according to the investigation he participated in religious services, which is interpreted as participating in the activity of an extremist organisation (with reference to the decision of the Russian Supreme Court on the liquidation of all 396 registered organisations of Jehovah’s Witnesses)
Court case number:
11802560015000075
Initiated:
July 11, 2018
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Bessonovskiy Inter-district Investigative Department of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Penza Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1), 282.2 (2)
Court case number:
1-110/2020 (1-167/2019)
Court:
Ленинский районный суд г. Пензы
Case History
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