Law Enforcement Officers Detained Jehovah's Witnesses in Udmurtia. Three of Them Are Over 60

On October 8, 2026, law enforcement officers conducted searches simultaneously at three addresses in Votkinsk. The next day, by court decision, 21-year-old Evelina Saltykova, 60-year-old Yuriy Basilaya, as well as a married couple — Valeriy and Svetlana Agafonov (both 61) — were sent to pretrial detention center No. 1 of Izhevsk. They are charged with participating in the activity of an extremist organization.

The searches began around 6:00 a.m. The Agafonov couple were awakened by a call, allegedly from the Traffic Police: they were told that their car parked under their window had been damaged. After this, law enforcement officers broke into their apartment. The search of the home of Evelina Saltykova and her mother lasted about 4.5 hours; their electronic devices and cash were seized. After the interrogation, the mother was released, but the daughter detained.

This is not the first time that Jehovah's Witnesses in Votkinsk are being persecuted. In January 2021, the first criminal case was initiated here, and both defendants were convicted. In Izhevsk — the republic's capital — from 2021 to 2024, three criminal cases were initiated; six believers are currently imprisoned.