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

On October 8, 2026, in Votkinsk, law enforcement officers conducted searches simultaneously at three addresses. 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 accused of 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 State Traffic Inspectorate: 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 Evelina Saltykova and her mother lasted about 4.5 hours; the owners had electronic devices and cash seized. After the interrogation, the mother was released, but the daughter was detained.

Votkinsk has already featured in the chronicle of the persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses. In January 2021, the first criminal case was initiated here, and both defendants were convicted. In the republic's capital — Izhevsk — from 2021 to 2024, three criminal cases were initiated; six believers are in places of imprisonment.