Illustrative photo
Illustrative photo
Actions of Law Enforcement Officers
Law enforcers once again search the homes of believers in the Yugra region. After being detailed for two days, two men were released on a condition that they sign a recognizance agreement
Khanty-Mansi Autonomous AreaIn the morning of August 19, 2020, law enforcers invaded at least four dwellings of Jehovah's Witnesses in the towns of Ugorsk and the neighboring Sovetskiy. No information about the detainees had been received so far. As new information becomes available, this news item will be updated.
Update. According to updated data, on August 19, searches were carried out at 9 addresses - 8 in the city of Yugorsk and 1 in the city of Sovetsky. 16 people were taken away for questioning. After the interrogations, two believers — 48-year-old Ugra resident Andrey Zhukov and 42-year-old Soviet resident Ivan Sorokin — were sent to a temporary detention center for 48 hours. During this time, the court had to decide on the choice of a preventive measure against them. However, late in the evening of August 20, the believers were unexpectedly allowed to go home on their own recognizance. A criminal case was initiated against Zhukov and Sorokin under Part 1 of Article 282.2. It is being investigated by the investigator of the Control and Investigation Department of the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation N. Y. Tatarnikov. (Header updated to reflect information received on August 21.)
This is not the first time that raids against believers have taken place in the region. In Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous District 23 believers have already been prosecuted, 5 of them went through detention, several people were tortured by law enforcers, and one — Timofei Zhukov — was illegally placed in a psychiatric hospital.
