The case of Tolmazov and Others in Tver

Case History

In the summer of 2023, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against three Jehovah’s Witnesses from Tver: Aleksandr Kostyuk, Maksim Barbazyuk, and pensioner Valery Tolmazov. Their homes were searched, after which the men were interrogated until late in the evening. The believers were accused of holding joint discussions of the Bible, which the investigation equated with extremist activities.
Timeline

  • #
    June 29, 2023 Case initiated Art. 282.2 (1)

    Maxim Prusakov, an investigator of the first department for the investigation of especially important cases of the investigative department of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation in the Tver region, initiates a criminal case under Part 1 of Article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (organization of extremist organization activities) against 68-year-old Valery Tolmazov, 50-year-old Alexander Kostyuk and 40-year-old Maxim Barbazyuk.

  • #
    July 24, 2023 Search Interrogation Case initiated Art. 282.2 (1)

    Early in the morning, searches are carried out in the homes of the three suspects, during which law enforcement officers seize electronic devices. Then Valeriy Tolmazov, Oleksandr Kostyuk and Maksim Barbazyuk are taken to the local department of the Investigative Committee for interrogations, which continue until late, after which the believers are released.

  • #
    October 10, 2023 Hearing in a court of the first instance

    The first witness on the list does not appear at the hearing due to illness.