In Vyselki, Woman, 67, Convicted for Her Faith. She Was Sentenced to 2-year Suspended Term

In the Krasnodar Territory, on November 19, 2025, the trial of Yelena Gadrshina concluded. The court found her guilty of participating in the activities of an extremist organization. For peacefully practicing her faith, Judge Ruslan Teplukhin sentenced the elderly woman to a two-year suspended term.

Yelena Gadrshina has been married for 45 years and has an adult daughter. She worked as an accountant for many years. Because of her beliefs, she was among the believers whose homes were searched in February 2022. A criminal case was opened against her, and her bank accounts were frozen. For nearly two years, she had to defend her good name in court.

During the hearings, lawyers repeatedly pointed out serious violations committed during the investigation. For example, the interrogation protocol of a secret witness, prepared by the investigator, turned out to be identical (down to the mistakes) to a document from another case. The investigator somehow managed to review 63 hours of video footage and produce 300 pages of transcripts in just three hours. One expert, a psychologist, admitted she was unsure whether her signature on the report was genuine; the defense found 155 citation errors in that report. Another expert, a linguist, referred to non-existent transcripts. The contracts for these specialists' work were lost.

Yelena is grateful for the support of friends and caring people: "Fellow believers come from different cities to support me during the hearings. Those who cannot attend send messages with words of encouragement and assurances that they are praying for me."

Yelena Gadrshina became one of seven women sentenced as part of the mass persecution of believers in Vyselki.