Searches of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Nizhny Novgorod: Four Believers Placed in Pretrial Detention

On March 17, 2026, searches were conducted in Nizhny Novgorod and the surrounding area at 10 homes of Jehovah's Witnesses. Sixteen people were affected, including five families. Among them were Sergey and Viktoriya Verkhoturov, who had served sentences for their faith several years earlier.

On the day of the searches, the court ordered four men—Sergey Verkhoturov, Maksim Kalinin, Anatoliy Chepkasov, and Evgeny Konkov—to be placed in a pretrial detention center (SIZO).

The raid was carried out as part of a new criminal case for participation in the activities of an extremist organization, which the Ministry of Internal Affairs opened on March 5, 2026, against unidentified persons. The searches were initiated by Investigator A. E. Stifeev.

The Investigative Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Nizhny Novgorod Region has initiated 12 out of 13 criminal cases against 26 believers.