Sixth Prison Term in a Week. Crimean Jehovah’s Witness Gets Six Years in Penal Colony for His Faith

Vitaliy Burik, 54, one of Jehovah's Witnesses from Kerch and father of a disabled daughter, heard the guilty verdict on February 19, 2026. The decision was made by Aleksandr Kovalyov, judge of the Kerch City Court. A few days earlier, similar harsh sentences were handed down to believers in Dmitrov, Tver and Birobidzhan.

The day before, in one session, the court went through the stages of interrogation of the accused, debates, and the final plea. The swift completion of the trial deprived the defense of the opportunity to present its evidence. The referee gave Vitaliy only 15 minutes to prepare for the final plea. After the verdict was announced, the man was taken into custody.

In the fall of 2024, a criminal case was opened against Vitaliy. After the search and detention, the man was placed under house arrest. Vitaliy recalls: "House arrest for me is also an arrest for the whole family. The restrictions especially affected our 'sunny' girl. Our joint cycling on a special bicycle made with her needs in mind, doing sports in the fresh air, by the sea, supported her physically and emotionally." Vitaliy had to travel 200 kilometers for interrogations, and later to court hearings.

"My family is a great comfort and support for me," the man continued, "especially my youngest daughter. She will always find words of encouragement for everyone." Vitaliy is also grateful to his friends for their care for his family: while the man was under house arrest, they brought his wife and daughter food, gave flowers and cards, and he himself was given an exercise bike.

The accusation was based on the written testimony of two secret witnesses, in which they stated that Burik continued the activities of the liquidated legal entity of Jehovah's Witnesses. However, at the trial, both admitted that they had stopped attending meetings for worship of the Kerch community back in 2017 and had not met with the defendant since then. When the prosecutor read out their affidavits, it turned out that some parts of the text coincided with speech errors.

In Crimea, 35 Jehovah's Witnesses are persecuted for their religious views. 14 of them received long term in penal colonies, and one was recently released, having served his sentence in full. "I am strengthened and supported by the examples of Crimean brothers and sisters," Vitaliy shared. "It turns out that we are going this way together, they are a few steps ahead of me."