Artamonova Larisa

Name: Artamonova Larisa Aleksandrovna
Date of Birth: September 7, 1970
Current status: who has served the main sentence
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation: 282.2 (2)
Sentence: punishment in the form of 2 years 6 months of imprisonment with restriction of liberty for 1 year; The sentence of imprisonment shall be considered suspended with a probationary period of 2 years

Biography

For 3 years, Larisa Artamonova had to face surveillance, search, interrogations and trial. The peaceful believer was found guilty of participating in extremist activities and sentenced to a fine, and in April 2021, the court of appeal toughened the sentence. Larisa was sentenced to 2.5 years of probation and 1 year of restriction of freedom.

Larisa was born in 1970 in Birobidzhan. When she was three years old, her father was killed. This psychological shock left an imprint on the rest of Larisa's life. Later, her mother remarried, Larisa had a younger brother.

Larisa graduated as a pastry chef, but also worked as a graphic designer and seamstress. In 1990 she got married and gave birth to a son. After 4 years, the couple divorced and Larisa had to start all over again. She increasingly wondered: why is there so much injustice, grief and evil in life? Spiritual quest led to Bible study. Larisa says: "I realized that only God can answer my questions and only the Creator can eliminate all evil."

Larisa was diagnosed with a rare form of autoimmune disease. However, the believer does not dwell on her difficulties. Bible principles help her to worry less and not aggravate her illness with worry. “My faith literally saves my life,” says Larisa.

The believer leads an active lifestyle: she rides a bicycle, skates and ski, continues to paint and participate in art exhibitions, and develops the profession of a portrait painter. Larisa's son got married, and now she is a happy grandmother of her little grandson.

Larisa's elderly parents were shocked that their daughter was being persecuted not for a crime, but for her beliefs. They were especially wounded by the fact that Larisa faced six years in prison - that is how much the man who killed her father received. The believer was added to the list of extremists of Rosfinmonitoring, and her bank cards were blocked.

Case History

In the life of Larisa Artamonova, a native of Birobidzhan, there were many difficulties: children’s psychological trauma due to the violent death of her father, the child’s illness, her own health problems. In September 2019, she faced reprisals because of her belief in Jehovah God — investigator D. Yankin opened a criminal case against Larisa under Part 2 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. He believed that the woman had worked with others to spread the teachings of Jehovah’s Witnesses. The case in the Birobidzhan District Court was considered by Vladimir Mikhalev. He sentenced Artamonova to a fine of 10,000 rubles. Deputy Prosecutor A. Vyalkov filed an appeal with the court with a request to toughen the sentence and send the believer to a colony for 4 years. In February 2021, the Court of the Jewish Autonomous Region, having toughened the sentence, imposed a sentence of 2.5 years probation and 1 year of restriction of freedom. The cassation court upheld this decision. In June 2022, the believer’s punishment was canceled and her conviction was cleared.
Timeline
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