Illustrative photo

Illustrative photo

Illustrative photo

Actions of Law Enforcement Officers

The City of Komsomolsk-on-Amur Has Joined the Religious Persecution: Search in the Family of Believers, Detention and Interrogation

Khabarovsk Territory

On May 22, 2020 the apartment of 46-year-old Dmitriy Bryankin, who lives there with his wife and daughters, was searched. The head of the family was taken away for interrogation. Two more families of believers are not in touch. Details are being clarified.

The religious persecution in Russia was a direct consequence of a miscarriage of justice—the decision of the Supreme Court to liquidate and ban all 396 Jehovah's Witnesses organizations in Russia. Driven by unknown motives, law enforcement officers issue a joint confession of law-abiding citizens for participation in the activities of an extremist organization. Law scholars and human rights defenders both inside and outside Russia unanimously condemn what is happening with Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia, including the Human Rights Commissioner in Russia, the Human Rights Council under the President of the Russian Federation, the President of the Russian Federation himself, prominent public figures in Russia, as well as the foreign policy service of the European Union, observers of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Jehovah's Witnesses have nothing to do with extremism and insist on their complete innocence. The Russian government has repeatedly stated that decisions by Russian courts to dismantle and ban Jehovah's Witnesses organizations "do not evaluate the Jehovah's Witnesses' doctrine, nor do they limit or prohibit the practice of the above doctrine on an individual basis.”

The case of Aliyev in Komsomolsk-on-Amur

Case History
Early in May 2020, a detachment of armed law enforcers burst into Nikolai Aliev’s apartment with a search, knocking the believer to the floor. The Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee for the Khabarovsk Territory and the Jewish Autonomous Region opened a criminal case against him under two parts of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The investigator suspected the peaceful citizen of organizing the activities of an extremist organization and being involved in it. The basis for the accusation was hidden video recordings of Aliyev’s conversations with a man who portrayed an interest in the Bible. Since October 2020, the case has been under consideration in court. In June 2021, the court found the believer guilty and sentenced him to 4.5 years of suspended imprisonment with restriction of liberty for 1 year and 2 months. The appellate and cassation instances upheld the verdict.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Khabarovsk Territory
Locality:
Komsomolsk-on-Amur
Suspected of:
"I spent ... conversations, propagandizing and justifying the activities of a banned religious (extremist) organization, taught its teachings" (from the decision to bring as an accused)
Court case number:
12002080009000066
Initiated:
April 30, 2020
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
SO in the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for the Khabarovsk Territory and the Jewish Autonomous Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (1.1), 282.2 (2)
Court case number:
1-86/2021 (1-905/2020)
Court:
Центральный районный суд г. Комсомольска-на-Амуре
Judge:
Наталья Гуркова
Case History
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