Unjust Verdicts

The Kemerovo Court of Cassation Upheld the Conviction of Aleksandr Bondarchuk and Sergey Yavushkin—Four Years Suspended

Kemerovo Region

On January 10, 2023, the Eighth Cassation Court of General Jurisdiction in Kemerovo upheld the conviction of Aleksandr Bondarchuk and Sergey Yavushkin - 4 years of suspended sentence. The hearing was held in person and was attended by 12 of the defendants' relatives and friends.

The court of first instance passed its sentence in June 2021, and in February 2022, the appeal left it unchanged. Aleksandr Bondarchuk and Sergey Yavushkin still do not agree with the charges against them, as they reported in their appeals: "Neither the verdict nor the appellate ruling provides clear criteria by which we can clearly see what specific actions we took were a continuation of illegal activities of a liquidated legal entity."

"I was sentenced," commented Bondarchuk, "only for worshiping Jehovah God, calling it an extremist, illegal action. And this is absurd!"

Yavushkin also explained to the court that Jehovah's Witnesses can in no way be connected with extremism: "Believing in Jehovah God and at the same time feeling hatred towards people are incompatible concepts. That is why I cannot be called an extremist in any way. Loving and respecting people is my way of life.

In June 2022, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that persecution of Jehovah's Witnesses in Russia is illegal: "Only religious statements and actions containing or calling for violence, hatred or discrimination can constitute grounds for suppression as 'extremist'. [...] The courts have not found any of the petitioners' words, acts or actions to be motivated by violence, hatred or discrimination against others or to have connotations of violence, hatred or discrimination" (§271).

Case of Yavushkin and Bondarchuk in Kemerovo

Case History
In January 2018, mass searches were carried out in the homes of civilians in Kemerovo. A year and a half later, the Investigative Committee opened a criminal case against Sergei Yavushkin and Alexander Bondarchuk. They were accused of participating in the activities of an extremist organization and financing it, the reason for which was the conversations of men with people about God and meetings with fellow believers. The believers were sent to a temporary detention facility for 2 days, and then under house arrest, where they spent 700 days each. As a result, Sergey and Alexander lost their jobs. Their property was seized. While in the temporary detention facility, Sergey was subjected to psychological pressure and ended up in the hospital with a stroke. In April 2020, the case went to court. The accusation was mainly based on the testimony of a witness who kept a secret record of worship. In June 2021, the court sentenced the believers to 4 years of probation. The appeal and cassation upheld the verdict. In September 2023, Sergey Yavushkin received parole.
Timeline

Persons in case

Criminal case

Region:
Kemerovo Region
Locality:
Kemerovo
Suspected of:
According to the investigation they participated in the continuation of activities by conducting conversations, religious meetings aimed at continuing the activities of a liquidated religious organization
Court case number:
11902320035000583
Initiated:
July 19, 2019
Current case stage:
the verdict entered into force
Investigating:
Investigation Department of the Investigative Committee for Kemerovo Region
Articles of Criminal Code of Russian Federation:
282.2 (2), 282.3 (1)
Court case number:
1-36/2021 (1-362/2020)
Court:
Заводский районный суд города Кемерово
Judge:
Вера Ульянюк
Case History
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